Decepticon Deception
by Kek-t
Summary: Discontinued. A girl from our world has transported to the Transformers universe. Stuck in Megatron's body, she'll have to find her way home without the Decepticons finding out and before the Autobots shoot first and ask questions later. Rated for language.
1. Chapter 1

**Hello. To all of you that have me on your story alert list I would first like to apologize. I had posted the rough draft of this by mistake. It wasn't spell checked enough and was shorter than I wanted it to be. Also to all of you waiting for updates on my one story, The Pharaoh's Star, I would quickly like to annouce that I may or may not re-write that in the future. It has been deleted from my page. There are too many spelling mistakes in that, which bothers me to no end. I haven't been on here long so I have no idea what getting a beta would entail. Plus, I'm not very reliable with updates and wouldn't want the added guilt of making a beta wait. Though, if anyone _would_ want to help me, I wouldn't object. **

**This is my first Transformers fic. I hope you all enjoy it.**

**Disclaimer: You know the drill.**

She was so fucked.

Why the hell did this happen? In fact, _how_ was this even possible in the first place? This kind of stuff didn't happen in real life. It usually only happened in the deep corners of the obsessed fan girl's mind, or at least in the wonderful and sometimes traumatizing world of fan fiction. But no, it was happening, and it was happening to her.

She was so completely, utterly, and thoroughly fucked.

She looked at the metallic, claw-like hand that was, for the time being, hers. She let out a slightly hysterical giggle and flinched when it came out in a darker, manlier tone. It was a tone that she had never managed to get to come out of her regular, female body.

She slowly dragged her vision from the offending claw to look at the rest of her body, still not completely wrapping her head around the complete impossibility of the situation. She had seen this body before, although, not at this angle. Anyone who had ever watched Transformers knew exactly whose body she inhabited. She released another insane giggle.

_'I'm in Megatron's body and I'm going to die.'_ She thought. Oh god, what does one do in this type of situation? She ripped her gaze away from her body to look around the room she was in. It was dark and slightly dingy. It was big- even for a Cybertronian; she could only wonder how big it would look from her regular view point. She didn't look at the room for very long or take in many details, though. She guessed that it wouldn't matter since she planned to get out of there as soon as possible. Hopefully back to her body and her world where things made sense.

She went to take a deep breath to steel herself and promptly realized she couldn't breathe. She had a mental panic attack and tried to make her mind understand that she didn't need to breathe when she was like this. Unfortunately, the part of her that was screaming that she couldn't breathe and was about to die wasn't in the mood for logic and she passed out.

Exactly eight minutes, forty-three seconds and seven milliseconds later she regained consciousness. She stared at the dark colored ceiling for a moment, wondering how she got on the floor before she remembered what was going on. She got up slowly, distracting her brain from thinking about breathing. If she ignored it then maybe she wouldn't have a spazz attack again.

What was she doing before? Oh, right, she was going to get the hell out of here. She looked around the room again and quickly walked to the only door. It slid open like all of the doors on science fiction movies did. She stopped for a second to appraise the door before hurrying down the hall.

Now, let's see. She was most likely in the Decepticon base, considering she wasn't locked in and that, well, she was in Megatron's body. Ok, so she could mostly likely leave as well. She was disguised as the head honcho around here. If any of the cronies had a problem with her leaving, they wouldn't dare voice it in front of her. Well, Starscream might. But he would probably just bitch, so there wasn't a real threat unless Megatron had severely pissed him off beforehand. That, or Starscream was plotting something that would happen today.

She paused in her brisk walking. Could this be Starscream's doing? She then shook off that thought and continued down the barren hall. He may have been a scientist and was trying to overthrow Megatron but she doubted he would go through all of the trouble to take her from her dimension for the soul purpose of making Megatron weaker. It seemed like too much work for something he could just as easily do with any human already on this planet if he, indeed did, figure out how switch the minds of a Cybertronian and a human.

She stopped dead in her tracks again. Panic racing through her mind briefly. If she was in Megatron's body, where was Mega-?

"Lord Megatron?" A monotone voice questioned. She jerked slightly looking at the Decepticon that had crept up on her. She recognized him as Soundwave. Even if she didn't, the way he talked gave it away. She was still for a moment before motioning him to continue, not trusting her voice.

"Situation: A few lower ranked Decepticons have stolen high-grade energon and are intoxicated in the main hanger." Well, at least that might help her find out where the hell she could find an exit. She was too lost in her thoughts to have any idea which way she went and had no clue on how to get out of here. She nodded to him and made a lead the way gesture. He stared at her for a moment, seeming perplexed before turning and leading the way back from where she was originally going.

She felt like a lost puppy as she followed the armed and more than likely dangerous Decepticon down the dark hallways, though she didn't act like it on the outside. She didn't want him to think anything was amiss, though he probably already had an inkling. He was Soundwave, after all. He was a mind reader for Pete's- her thoughts cut off right there. What if he was reading her mind right now? She frantically blanked her mind while silently fearing he would whip around and shoot her. The mech just continued to walk at a slightly hurried pace.

Maybe he didn't read his commander's thoughts. Or maybe she would know if he did and he didn't want to take the chance of Megatron crushing Soundwave's face into the ground.

"Query:" Soundwave intone, breaking her train of thought and making her lift her head, "Is there a malfunction with Lord Megatron's vocal processor?" She stared at him blankly for a moment as they walked before it hit her what he was asking.

"No." She growled out quietly. Still somewhat surprised and disturbed about much like Megatron she sounded. Soundwave did not talk for the rest of the short trip to the main hanger of what she could only assume was the Nemesis. She faintly hoped that she was in the movie verse. If she wasn't she was in a boat without a paddle. Even if she was though, she still didn't really remember enough know how to be adequately informed. She let out an irritated sigh as they finally reached the door to the main hanger. Soundwave swung open the door and looked at Megatron.

'_Aw, looks like chivalry isn't dead.'_ She thought sarcastically. She strode in proudly while trying to stop another oncoming panic attack. She had no idea what Decepticons acted like outside of battle and the ones she was about to see weren't even sober!

'_Shit, why me?'_ She thought pitifully. She then heard a metallic screech before freezing at the sight that played out in front of her. First of all, the room was _huge_. Also there were way more than a few drunken Decepticons in the room. It seemed that there were a lot more than there was supposed to be and most were looking on in either irritation or amusement. Most straightened their stances when they saw her enter the room.

But that wasn't what was so shocking. What made her stop on a dime, and quite truthfully, made her day was the unknown, to her anyway, three Decepticons clinging to Starscream like he was their favorite childhood toy that they never wanted to let go of. If it wasn't for Starscream's shrill shrieking and the fact that he was about to shoot one of them in the face it could have been considered cute.

She, personally, didn't want to interfere. It's not that she wanted to see the drunken Decepticons get killed, no, because even if they were evil alien robots hell bent on destroying the human race, they were still alive. She didn't like the thought of anything being killed. And in her mind that was also a good reason not to get involved. Who knows if the enraged Starscream wouldn't aim his weapon at her? Sure it seemed slightly illogical but she didn't exactly want to take any chances when it came to her life. But then there was a part of her that felt bad about the blissfully unaware expression on the Decepticon that was about to be incinerated. The words slipped out before she even had the chance to re-think it a third time.

"Starscream," She called, trying not to wince at the sound of her voice again, "_What_ do you think you're doing?" She felt a hint of pride at the way her voice came out. It was threatening and demanding at the same time. Also it was totally believable. She quickly made a note to self to try to pursue a career in acting when she got back to her own body. All thoughts of Hollywood lights and Broadway left her mind at the dark glare sent her way.

"I believe I was about to scrap these useless frag heads, _my lord_." He spat the last two words out sarcastically. She resisted the urge to roll her eyes.

"Lower your weapons." She snarled. Internally she grinned when she realized how stupid her earlier thoughts of him shooting her were. Sure, he might try to murder Megatron though sneaky tactics and malevolent schemes but he was never so direct as to outright shoot him. He also didn't have the gale to do in the middle of a room full of Decepticons.

"But-," He was going to protest, practically snarling while his irritation grew as the three drunken Decepticons still groped at his arms and legs. She was amused at the three's antics, silently praising whatever deity it was that made them happy drunks.

"_Lower_ your _weapons_." She said again with an air of finality. Starscream deactivated his guns after a moment, muttering, what were most likely obscenities, under his breath. Then he let out another scream as one of the three yanked him to the floor. She had to hold back a cringe at the murderous expression on the Air Commander's faceplates. She sighed before realized she probably had to get physically involved. Joy.

She walked forward until she was in reach of the Second in Command. Hoping she wasn't acting too out of character she reached out and grabbed the seeker by the arm and yanked him out of the dog pile. Starscream quickly ripped his arm out of her grip and sneered. She didn't resist the urge to roll her eyes this time. She looked down at the giggling Decepticons and idly wondered what anyone expected her to do with them.

"Well?" Starscream questioned sharply. She raised Megatron's equal of an eyebrow at him.

"Well, what?" She drawled back. Starscream looked at her like she had just grown a second head before his expression darkened. She sent a quick glance around the room at the spectators and they all seemed slightly confused over something.

"Statement: These three stole Lord Megatron's high-grade." Soundwave intoned from her other side. She was able to hold back her jump of surprise and wondered how someone so big could be so quiet. She sent him a look out of the corner of her eye and saw he had one of his birds on perched on his shoulder and Ravage by his feet.

'_Ah, now I get it.'_ They all expected Megatron to get furious over his stolen equivalent of liquor. She looked down at the three and saw that they must have taken a lot to be this buzzed and were probably too drunk to care if she beat their faces in.

Not that she wanted to. She let out an aggravated sigh and would have pinched the bridge of her nose but luckily stopped when she saw the claw-hands inches from her face. _'Close call.'_ She'd rather not have large gouges in her face, no matter what body she was in.

She pondered why she seemed so calm about this all of a sudden when before, not even a half hour earlier, she was panic driven. She shook her head before lowering her arm again. She could feel the weight of many gazes on her. Some confused, some curious, others in apprehension and the rest in excitement or indifference.

"Inquiry: Are you positive there is nothing wrong with your health, Lord Megatron?" The quiet question caught the attention of many, if they weren't the center of it already.

"I'm fine." She said somewhat gruffly, still trying to be as Megatron-y as possible without randomly slaughtering humans. She still had to get out of here. If they even had a thought that she wasn't their leader she had no doubt they would try to kill her, and most likely succeed. Yet, she still had no idea how to get out of- a sudden idea came to her.

"I'm going on patrol," She said abruptly. "Soundwave, deal with these three accordingly. Also you're in charge while I'm gone." The mech nodded. She turned to Starscream who still wore a scowl on his face and opened his mouth to protest.

"Why is he in charge?" He snapped. "_I_ am the one who's in Second in Command." She smirked at him.

"Because you're coming with me."

(Line Break)

She could practically feel the pent up anger and suspicion that Starscream was emitting. She learned quickly that Starscream did not like patrol duty and was not above what humans would call a temper tantrum to get out of it. Unluckily for him she was unwavering in her decision. Actually, it was a good thing that he didn't seem to want to do it, or at least not for very long and in Megatron's presence. She didn't blame him, in fact, she was glad. She didn't want him to be with her for long anyway. She just needed him to help get her out. Then they could fly around for a bit and she could tell him to get back to base. She had little doubt that he wouldn't jump at the chance to go back.

She could see how tense the seeker was as they walked, his wings held taunt. He was probably worried about the fact that Megatron was behind him, waiting for a blow that she was not going to give. She sighed softly and figured the only way to ease his tension was to walk beside him. She caught up to his stride effortlessly, barely a half a step behind so he was still leading the way but having it be less obvious.

She saw Starscream send another suspicious glance at her from the corner of his eye. She looked to the heavens in defeat. It seemed even the comfort of being able to see every move she could or would make still wasn't enough for the skittish Second in Command. The only thing that would probably work is if she told him that she wasn't the mech that continually beats the ever living crap out of him. That was out of the question, of course. He'd probably do one of three things, 1) Kill her immediately, 2) Strap her to a lab table and experiment to figure out how this happened in the first place and then kill her, or 3) Not believe her and kill her then tell everyone Megatron went off his rocker. None of the options ended well for her. She wouldn't have been able to tell any of the Decepticons. Even Soundwave, the most loyal, would maybe have found a way to bring his leader back but probably at the expense of her life.

All in all, this was not a safe place to be. She had to leave, and quickly. She didn't know where she would go or what she would do next but anywhere was better than here. She cringed and amended her statement when she remembered Sector Seven. But other than those two, she'd rather be anywhere else.

"Something wrong, oh _great_ and _powerful leader_?" He must have noticed her change in expression. She let out another sigh. Did he have to be so sarcastic when he addressed her? Maybe if he acted like less of a smart ass Megatron would hit him less. Mercifully they made it wherever it was that they were headed, saving her from having to reply.

They entered the room as the door slide to the side. She looked around quickly, noting that it seemed to be somewhat like a camera room. It had a wall of cameras, all showing different angles of the same ocean. She could see how someone could get bored here easily. In fact… She glanced at the mech that seemed to have drifted off into recharge. Starscream let out a snarl before stomping up the unsuspecting Decepticon. He woke up with a jolt at the loud sound of metal feet slamming into the ground. His head shot up and he stood quickly, eyes locked on hers.

"M-My lord… I-I…" It was obvious that he didn't have a good excuse as to why he was asleep while there could have been an attack on the base. Especially with him as the only one able to let the other Decepticons know before it was too late. When she didn't say anything Starscream glared darkly at the 'Con.

"Just raise the tower, you fragger." Starscream bit out before whirling around and leaving the room. She raised an eyebrow, her eyes following his dramatic leave before heading out of the room. She saw him standing down the hall, the door in front of him opened to what looked like an airplane hangar. She stepped in, the door shutting behind her. Suddenly the floor jolted upwards. Her surprised flickered across her face for a moment before it was concealed again. She felt slightly giddy at the thought of finally getting out of here. That was, until she remembered one key detail.

She had no idea how to turn into her alt form.

'_Fuck.'_

Wait, wait, wait. It couldn't be that hard, could it? It seemed like second nature to them. Like instinct. Surely she could do it too. She heard the rushing of water as the air hanger breached the surface of the water. Only a few moments later one of the walls slid up to reveal the open ocean and sky. She stared at it in hidden awe. Seeing it in such a clear view and new perspective made a huge difference.

"Are you coming or not, _master_?" Starscream asked snidely. He had yet to change into his alt form, probably hoping she would change her mind about bringing him. Blinking, she realized she could tell him he didn't have to come now and prevent future lost time with pretending to be on patrol and possible embarrassment over her lack of flying skills. And since she was leaving for good she could slip up a little in Megatron's character and Starscream would probably just think it was the Decepticon leader messing with him.

"You don't have to come if you don't want to." She blurted out quickly. She saw the Air Commander's eyes widen in surprise. Rightfully so, especially with how adamant she had been that he come with her.

"_What?_" His voice was a mix between shock and indignation. She cringed internally. She could definitely see a hissy fit about to start. "You make me come all the way up here just to tell me _I can't go-"_ She cut him off quickly, hoping to avoid the rant that she knew she deserved.

"You're absolutely right." She was pretty sure Starscream just made a dent in the floor with his jaw. "And plus, what sense does it make to have the First and Second in command doing simple patrol duty? It would be pathetic." She saw she hit a nerve there. Starscream was _not pathetic_. "So stay here and I'll just go." She went to shift into Megatron's alt form, praying that if she didn't think about it, it would just come naturally.

The gods were not on her side.

She had absolutely no idea someone could fuck up a transformation that badly. If she still had her human body she would have been redder than red. The heat on her face would have burnt out the sun with its intensity. And the whole time Starscream looked completely dumbfounded. Like the world had ended and that his god, Primus, came up to him and said the meaning of life was cheese.

"What is _wrong_ with you?" Starscream said in mild horror and amazement. She had definitely thrown him for the biggest loop. She grunted as she transformed her body into something somewhat recognizable. She was not as graceful as she hoped she would be and fell flat into the ground with another grunt.

"Nothing." She barked back. God, why couldn't the floor just swallow her up? Even if she wouldn't admit it if asked by anyone in this universe; Starscream was in her top five favorite Transformers characters. This was just sad and pathetic and embarrassing.

"You call this nothing? That was completely _awful._ What happened? Does the _great_ Lord Megatron have a _glitch_?" He continued to rant as she thought over what she did wrong that time. She was pretty sure she went too fast too soon. She stood up carefully as she drowned out Starscream's taunting and tried again, slowly letting every gears shift into place and settle. She let out an inaudible sigh of relief.

"Shut up, Starscream." She growled out menacingly. She heard him start to cackle but ignored it, starting the engine of the jet and flying off in a roar that muted the sound coming from him. She flew off without looking back.

(Line Break)

She really should have thought this through.

Let's count out her list of problems, shall we? Well, first off, she had no idea which way she was going. She didn't even know if she was headed toward land or not. All she could see, no matter how impressive her new range of site was, was an ocean. That's right; she didn't know even _which_ ocean she was over. She should have stayed and gather more information. Or possibly just have taken Starscream on patrol and then convinced him that it would be beneficial to go to the nearest land to make sure the closest humans had no idea of their base's presence. But it was too late to go back now. She didn't doubt that the Second in Command hadn't told _everyone_ about her _brilliant _transformation. Then again, the seeker might be keeping it to himself for future blackmail. She wasn't going to take that chance, though. Soundwave already had his suspicions that there was something wrong with the Decepticon Leader. Hearing about her flummox would only provoke him to get her checked by their resident medic. She shuddered internally at the thought of the small Decepticon in the second movie, moving around through Sam's nose and throat.

Second on her list of how stupid she was, was the fact that she had no plan as to what to do next. Or where would be a safe place to stay and/or hide. She was still debating whether or not she should try to find the Autobots and tell them of her problem. They would most likely be more helpful and less prone to kill her if they knew she wasn't Megatron. On the other hand, why would they ever even think to believe her? Maybe if she ended up in Bumblebee they might be keener to look into it, but not when she was temporally the not-so-enthusiastic owner of the Decepticon Leader's body.

Although, even if she was _going to_ go to Optimus Prime and the others she still had no idea how to contact them. And she didn't delude herself into thinking that making them come to her by scaring the ever-living shit out of some people would make them want to listen to her. She didn't feel like getting shot today, or any day, _thank you very much_. She never had a good memory but wasn't the Autobot base in Diego Garcia? Or was that just a regular military base? Not like she knew where that base was anyway.

Because, number three, she had no idea how to access the internet. And as an avid online chatter and fan fiction junkie, it was more than just annoying, it was infuriating. But no way was she going to check through the inner workings of the most psychotic alien robot's mind when she could possibly crash into the ocean and _rust_. Her refusal to search what this hunk of metal could do was also the reason for her inability to see if she had a com. link that she could have also used to contact the 'Bots. But it wasn't just her dislike of the idea taking her eyes off the skies or of what scary or kinky, if fan fictions had anything to them, things she would find in this skull. It was just one thought. One, kind of illogical, thought that sent her mind into terror at the prospect of diving deeper.

'_What if he is still in here? Like a parasite eating me alive just under the skin.'_ She locked that thought away quickly. If she was going to get through this she need to hold down her paranoia and keep herself together. Furthermore, this was not the best place to have a panic attack.

She was pulled out of her thoughts by land in the distance. She angled herself slightly upward so that when she got closer she might get a better idea of the shape of the land and be out of site from any cloud gazing humans. Suddenly she realized another problem she had. A jet was not a good alt form to have when you are entering another country. She idly wondered if it was just her _destiny_ to get shot.

'_You know what?'_ She thought as she reached the sky over the unknown land, _'Screw it. I'm going to get shot anyway._' She jerked downward, plummeting towards the ground at high speeds. She aimed so she would land just inside the empty park she saw in the seaside town. She was surprised with the range of hearing when she heard screaming. Meters from the barren patch of grass she jerked again so the nose of the faced skyward, a complete one-eighty and transformed. She tried to land on her feet and let out an aggravated snarl when she landed flat on her ass. Screaming reached her ears again, along with the sounds of cars swerving, most likely in shock of the giant alien robot that landed in their hometown park. She folded her legs into a pretzel position and crossed her arms. She would wait. People ran from the scene like bats out of hell. Soon the city seemed devoid of life.

A few minutes later she was completely bored out of her mind. Where were the cops? Where were the Autobots? Where was anyone? She started tapping the ground with her claw and made an irritated noise when it pierced the ground. She started to look around the town she was in the middle of, hoping to find a sign that would give her an idea on where she was. Maybe it would give her an estimate on how long it would take for the 'Bots to get here. Nothing was a useful as she thought it would be. Most were just storefronts that could have been in any state. Well, at least she was in the US. Anywhere else would have just been a hassle and a long wait for the Optimus and the others to get here.

That didn't quell her absolute _boredom, _though. She realized how odd it was that she could be bored when she was in the Transformers movie. She wondered if she could overcome her dread at the notion searching Megatron's mind on how to access the internet. She would have loved to be able to go on imgur or fanfiction at a time like this. And just think how much quicker she could probably read fan fics now. Or if she went on imgur: how fast her connection would be. She sighed and shook her head. Frowning, she looked around again. How could Prime not be here yet? She could have leveled the whole town by now! She briefly questioned if anyone had even _called the cops_. If not, she probably looked like an idiot.

She heard a noise from behind her and quickly snapped her head to the side to look over her shoulder. There was a quiet gasp and a thud. She blinked at the sight that met her. Dressed in a pale yellow dress was a little girl, about seven or eight, though she was never a good guesser of ages. What was she even doing out here? What was _wrong _with her parents? Letting the girl this close to a giant alien _monster _was just so completely reckless and _stupid_. Speaking of parents, where was the girl's? Shouldn't she be near them during an alien invasion? Wait, why wasn't this little girl in school? Now that she thought about it, she had no idea what day it was either. As she looked at the girl again, she had a feeling that she had seen her before. But _where-?_

"Are you a friend of the Tooth Fairy?" The girl blurted out, clearly not that afraid. She blinked again before she burst out laughing. A deep, amused sound. She decided she didn't mind it as long as it didn't sound ominous. Well, at least she knew where she knew the girl from. She was the girl that saw Ironhide in the first movie when he landed by her pool. So was she near where ever that girl lived? Was she in California?

"Not yet." She said in amusement, voice deep and gentle as to not scare her off, "But I would like to be." It would be fun to be friends with the Transformers, though she doubted any of them would be enthusiastic to bond with her when she looked the way she did. The little girl beamed at her and came closer. God, she was small compared to her. She put out a hand for the girl to climb on before she could realize it might not be a good idea. Too late now though, the girl had already sat herself in Megatron's clawed hand. She sighed and brought that hand closer to her face slowly, fearing that she might fall if she moved to quickly.

"Then why don't you?" The little one asked curiously. Before she could answer she heard the sound of sirens entered her hearing range. She knew immediately that it was the Autobots. Suddenly a ping box entered her vision. She looked at it in surprise but was not shocked to see that it stated that Optimus Prime was the one who sent it. She assumed it was like a greeting and that she was supposed to identify herself by sending one back. If she knew how that is. The sound of the siren wails got louder before the cars finally came into her range of sight. She counted quickly, seeing that there were three headed in her direction. She could tell that they were Optimus, Ironhide and Ratchet. She was slightly disappointed that Bumblebee wasn't there even if the logical part of her brain told her that he was most likely protecting Sam and that it didn't matter because she was about to die anyway.

Once the three cars saw her they increase their speed, barreling towards the park. That is, until they saw the girl in her palm. The sound of squealing of tires stopping cut through the town like a gunshot. The three cars came to a stop just on the edge of the large square of grass. The tense silence was broken after a moment, when the Autobots transformed. She felt a small amount of envy and a lot of awe about how effortlessly they did it. All the gears move smoothly and fluidly into place. It was almost like a dance with the inner workings of their bodies. In a word, it was beautiful. She still didn't move, afraid to break the spell of magnificence that they had created with doing the simplest of things for them. All was calm and peaceful for that one moment in her mind.

Until Ironhide pulled out his cannons, charged and pointed right at her face.

"Ironhide," Optimus barked, eyes still locked on the hand holding the small child who didn't seem to have a care in the world. "Lower your weapons."

"But Optimus-," Ironhide tried to protest and got a glare for his efforts. She was reminded of her confrontation with Starscream earlier. Although, it seemed that Ironhide didn't need to be told twice. The command in Optimus's voice and the sharpness of his glare was enough to make him comply. Hell, it even made her want to crawl in a hole and it wasn't even directed at her yet. His voice also made her want to melt in a pile of goo. Now don't misunderstand, she wasn't one of those rabid fangirls that would kill someone over not liking what they deemed to be 'da bestest thing EVA OMGZ *fangasm*' no. She would usually just feel the need to laugh and felt a little more girly around the things she liked the best. She had only two of those things at the moment. The Joker from Batman, because, god, who didn't love the Joker? And the other one was _Transformers._ So, in other words, his voice, in person and his Optimus-ness, _in person_, was just getting to her. As long as she played it coolly, calmly and stayed collected she would be fine and the fan would stay locked away behind iron bars silently _screaming._

Prime looked up from her hand to look her in the eyes. His bright blue optics were hard but she could still the sadness, the helplessness and the _pain_. How could she have not realized before that he thought she was going to kill the child and he could do nothing but watch? She opened her mouth to speak, to assure him that she didn't want to hurt the girl, that she just wanted- _needed_ help. But it seemed that she didn't have her inner fangirl as trapped as she once thought.

She emitted a sound that she never wanted to make again, _ever_. The sheer embarrassment of it was a million times worse than the crappy transformation in front of Starscream was. It was a mix between a gurgle, a few unknown words, and worst of all, something that could only be called a squeal. She wanted to die. Right then, she had never wanted anything more. She had never squealed over _anything_. So why did the time it finally happened have to be in front of _Optimus mother fucking Prime?_ She avoided the three bewildered stares she was most likely receiving when she heard giggling. She groaned and carefully brought her empty hand to her head in a facepalm. What a wonderful first impression.

She let out a yelp when a red sensor hit her in the side of her neck. It felt like she accidently pressed something hot against it for a moment. She looked up and grimaced when she saw Ratchet had scanned what was most likely her vocal processor. She felt a fleeting sympathy for when Bumblebee was hit with it in the first movie.

"A little warning would have been nice." She muttered bitterly. When the medic bot was about to reply with what would have been a scathing retort she cut him off by saying, "Anyway! I need your help." She thought being blunt would be the best course of action. Prime seemed to reel in shock.

"What makes you think we would ever help slagging 'Con like _you_?" Ironhide snarled.

"Watch your fucking language in front of the child." She snarled right back, albeit ironically. The girl's giggling only got louder. Ironhide sputtered, obviously unable to think of a comeback at the moment. Ratchet let an amused smirk tug at his lips briefly before it disappeared. Optimus seemed to get his bearings on the situation back and asked the question the three were most likely wondering.

"Help with what?" His voice was cautious and curious. She grinned at him, probably not so non-threatening with Megatron's freakishly sharp teeth.

"Maybe this conversation would be better held somewhere more private. You know, less _prying eyes._" She said, pointedly looking at their surroundings. Optimus nodded before speaking.

"As long as you leave the human child here and unharmed." She stared at him for a moment before looking down at the girl quickly before looking back up, then down again.

"Oh. Oh, right. Duh." She went to put her hand down slowly before pausing in midair. There was something she was forgetting… She pulled her hand back up, closer to her chest and stood carefully. The three mechs moved into defensive and wary stances in under half a second. She waved them off with her empty hand before holding it near the one with the girl in it. She strode over to Ironhide quickly and grinned again, holding her hands out so that the little one could see him better.

"Meet the Tooth Fairy, little one." The girl waved cheerfully, still trying to stifle her laughter at the Bot's expression. Ironhide started at the familiar nickname, gaping like a fish before he snapped his mouth shut and growled darkly.

"How did you-" She cut him off by quickly turning around and placing the girl on the ground gently. She straightened after the girl climbed off of her hand. The little one smiled up at her again before hugging her foot. The girl pulled back and started walking towards the street; presumably back to where ever her parents were.

"Good luck!" She called over her shoulder before she darted around the corner. She couldn't stop the soft smile that graced her metal features. She glanced to the side to see Prime looking at her with a strange expression. She made a large sweeping gesture that seemed to say 'after you' and spoke.

"Lead the way."


	2. Chapter 2

**Disclaimer: I do not own Transformers in any way, shape or form.**

She absolutely _hated_ sand.

She had never had an aversion to it before. In actuality, she used to love to go to the beach and feel the warm sand on her feet as she made her way to the shimmering water. But being in this desert where they had led her to keep their conversation from _'prying eyes'_ as she put it was horrible. It probably wouldn't have been as bad if she hadn't fallen, _again_, and gotten sand in the exposed gears of Megatron's body. The expressions she had gotten at her increasingly _flawless _transformation after carefully following their alt forms to this heated hell would have been humorous if she wasn't so _pissed_.

"Do you have a glitch?" Ratchet asked bluntly, the first to break the tense silence that she fumed in while still on the ground.

"You know," She snapped irritably, "I would really appreciate it if everyone _stopped _asking me that _fucking question_." She jerked herself to her feet and couldn't hold in the urge to kick the sand angrily, not matter how childish it looked from an outside view. There was a brief silence as she glared furiously at nothing and attempted to get some of the sand off of her.

"You asked for our help." Optimus prompted. She slid her gaze slowly to meet his eyes.

"That I did." She responded, trying to think of a way to word her explanation. They already thought she- well, not her. They already thought _Megatron_ was insane and possibly had a malfunction to boot. _'Wonderful.'_ She thought sarcastically. There was no way she could break it easily to them, not without beating around the bush.

"What would you do if I told you I'm not Megatron and that I'm really a person from an alternate dimension who loves a group of movies and animated series called Transformers, which stars all of you Cybertronians?" She blurted out in a rush. Well… that was smooth. The silence that met her question was deafening. She fidgeted with her clawed hand for a moment before glancing up, her head still tilted towards the ground. It was abundantly clear that, out of all the things they expected her to say, that was definitely _not_ one of them. They were so still that she idly wondered if she had somehow taken a picture of them with her optics and couldn't get it off her line of vision. Either way, it was clear they had no idea what to say in response. So, in a suicidal mission to talk her way out of the awkward disbelief that had settled over the group she spoke.

"Well," She said uncomfortably, "At least while I'm in his body I could tell the Decepticons to stop fighting, right?" They were still all stock still, staring at her. She felt her hopes for help plummet. What had she been thinking? Of course they would never believe her. It was completely _stupid_ to come to them for help. Even though she was no longer human, she swore she could feel phantom tears prickle the back of her eyes. She let out a slight choking noise. Why did she have to be so _stupid all the time_?

"You… you know what," She breathed out, "I-I shouldn't have bothered you with this. I-I can… just figure something out. S-Sorry." She stuttered and moved back to make more room for herself to transform. Her movement seemed to bring them all back to the world of the living.

"Wait." Optimus called softly, his gaze unfathomable. "You no longer wish to fight in the war, Brother?" Suddenly with those words her uncertainty and sadness turned abruptly to anger and indignation.

"I already told you I'm _not him_." She snarled. "What part of _'I'm stuck in the body of a psychotic alien robot' _did you not comprehend? You may not believe me and that's _fine_. I can figure something out on my own but _do not _patronize me." He flinched slight as if he had been struck. She saw the warring emotions in his body language. It seemed a concoction of confusion, hopelessness, and… was that disappointment? It only then hit her how badly he really wanted Megatron to change his mind about the war he started, no matter how unlikely that was. All he wanted was his brother back. She felt her angry expression soften as she breathed out a sigh.

"Optimus," She called to get his attention from his raging thoughts, "I know you want him to end the war. I know you want your brother back… but I'm not him." His shoulders drooped slightly at her words, in the feeling of weight being lifted off his shoulder or in defeat she didn't know.

"But…" She continued, gaining his gaze again with her voice, "I would appreciate any help to get back home. And I can give you vital information on upcoming events that will save the lives of some of your fellow warriors." _'That is, if we are in the movieverse.' _She glanced at Ironhide fleetingly. Ratchet seemed to be the only one that saw the quick glance. The metal plating over his face becoming blank as he stared at the large mech. Prime seemed to finally believe her and nodded in acceptance and gratitude.

They decided to take her back to their nearest base. It was, not surprisingly, in California. Unfortunately, they were somewhere in Texas with a _long_ trip back. She was puzzled by this tidbit of information. How the hell had she missed Florida or Cuba? That is, unless the Decepticon base had been moved to the Gulf of Mexico. When she had asked why they were out this far in the first place, she had gotten the response that they were on a scouting mission. What for, they did not feel the need to disclose to her. They allowed her to fly because they really had no choice. She also completely refused to get a new alt form. They did not question it a second time nor did they hold it against her. Apparently, it was a special thing when someone chose and alt form. Plus they all doubted she could find something big enough in the middle of nowhere. They had made good ground in their attempt to get away from civilization but she still groaned at the thought of all the distance they had left to cover. About an hour or two in, she couldn't help but let the predictable question slip.

"Are we there yet?" The slight growl from Ironhide, the resigned sigh from Ratchet, and the patient negative to her question from Optimus told her, that no, they weren't even close.

That still didn't stop her from asking again about ten minutes later.

(Line break)

She could practically feel the relief emanating from the Autobots when the base was in sight. She was pleasantly surprised that Ironhide hadn't shot her after all of the times she had asked that dreaded question. She looked at the large base in curiosity. Besides the insanely large size of most of the buildings, you would never know that the Transformers were there. A few of the structures were smaller, presumably for the humans that lived on the base.

She had been high enough for people not to see her, yet she was loud enough and the Autobots' hearing was keen enough to hold conversations on their way there. Though, the blaring alarm that started going off in the base made her realize that the bases' security system could easily detect her. Now the only question was as to why they were using the alarm if they knew she was coming.

"…You did tell them beforehand that I was accompanying you, right?" She said hesitantly. Optimus slowed down marginally before speaking.

"…I knew there was something I was forgetting." She made a choking sound before abruptly landing and transforming a few meters in front of Optimus's alt form. The three had to slam on their breaks to stop from hitting her. She scrambled to her feet, ignoring the fresh patch of sand that once again got into her gears.

"You didn't give them any warning!" She screeched. "Do you have any idea how completely _retarded_ that is?" She didn't notice the cars that raced towards her from behind, her shocked anger blinding her from anything but the focus of her emotions. Prime and the others, however, did. They transformed at the exact moment Prowl changed out of his alt form and shot her in the shoulder.

_That_ she fucking noticed.

Everything went white for a moment. Her whole body wracked with pain. She didn't even hear her own scream of agony. She felt dizzy and was about to pass out again when she heard a voice talking near her. Her optics focused on her surroundings. Ratchet was the closest to her, checking to see how badly she had been hit. Optimus was behind her, an unwavering shield between her and the misinformed others. Ironhide stood at her side, both cannons charged in warning. There was yelling but she couldn't even think about trying to decipher what they were saying. A hand grabbed her arm, Ratchet looking at her face to face as he said something. She shook her head, in negative to the question or to clear her head she didn't know. All she knew was that she _hurt_ and _wanted it to stop_. He shook her good shoulder lightly to get her attention and she tried to focus. What did he want? He said something about moving? She didn't want to move. She hurt enough as it was.

"We need you to let go of the ground. You need to get to the medical bay." _'Oh, that made sense_._'_ She looked down at her hands. When had she dug her claws into the ground? She loosened her hold slightly and tried to push herself to her feet. She stumbled but a hand caught her, she had no idea who. Her mind was white again with the pain of moving. She felt her good arm being hoisted over someone's shoulder and she leaned heavily on the body, exhausted. She had those ping boxes in her vision again. They gave her alerts and warnings but she didn't feel the need to read them. She looked around blurrily. She saw Prowl and some other 'Bots. Prowl was the only one with his guns still equipped.

And suddenly her exhaustion turned to a burning _fury._

Said fury seemed to let her stand on her own two feet as she moved away from the mech she had been leaning on. _'Optimus,'_ her mind noted. Ratchet let out an exclamation of protest but she ignored it in favor of taking a few steps towards Prowl.

"_What the fuck?"_ She snarled out. The police bot seemed slightly surprised at her human slur before his face went blank again he opened his mouth to speak but she was _far_ from done.

"_No_." She barked. "You don't get to talk. You fucking _shot me_. That is _not okay!_ Do you have _any _idea how much that _hurt_?" Optimus tried to intervene, he really did but he was no match for her wrath. She turned her sights on the Autobot leader when he tried to speak.

"You better not be about to tell me to calm down." She growled. "I swear to God, _Don't fucking tell me to calm down_. Especially since you're the _dumbass_ that didn't _tell them I was coming here_." He seemed at a loss as what to say in this situation. She just continued to rant. "You know, I used to think Prowl was cool. He had a damn tree in his room in the one animated series. I was all like, 'Oh cool. He has a tree. I wish I had a tree. Trees are epic,' but no, not anymore. Now tree suck and it's his entire fault because he had to be a dick and _shoot me_." She whipped around to look at Prowl again. He looked severely confused at this point. "You hear that, you dick munching, bastard, monkey licking, _whore_? _Trees suck because of you!_"

With that she started to stomp away before she stopped again. She turned on her feet slowly. All of the 'Bots tensed, waiting to see who her anger would fall on next. She looked at Ratchet and sniffed.

"My shoulder hurts." She said, somewhat pathetically. Ratchet let out a sigh and started walking to the base, waving a hand to indicate her to follow. She left with him, leaving all of the others on the outside of the base in confusion. On the way to the base she heard a question from Prowl directed at Optimus.

"Does he have a glitch?" Suffice to say, Ratchet had to hold her back from running back and beating the ever living shit out of him.

(Line break)

Ratchet lead her through the base to his medical bay, making sure to stay out of sight of the main hangar where the rest of the 'Bots and humans waited. The medic had told her that it was highly probable that she would be shot at again if see was seen before things were explained. She responded that it was still likely she would get shot at afterwards too. She only got a snort from the older mech. After about a half of an hour, Ratchet's _lovely_ bedside manner included, she was patched up. The Autobot had explained that it would take her body a little time more to recover completely. Just then, the door to the medical bay opened to reveal Optimus Prime himself. The Leader of the Autobots stood, staring calmly at her from the entrance to the med bay.

"Did you explain the situation this time or am I about to be thrown to the sharks again?" She said the bitter words in a light tone, raising her chin and tilting her head to get a better look at him. She noted how his shoulders seemed to tense at her question. His unfathomable eyes stared into her for an unknown amount of time before he spoke.

"I apologize for my negligence and for my inability to keep you unharmed. Believe me when I tell you that I never meant for this to happen." She was surprised at how sincere he sounded, even more so at the subtle pleading in his voice. That… that just wasn't fair. She raised her arms in defeat, holding down the wince at that action before turning to Ratchet.

"He's worse than a kicked puppy." She stated, before motioning to the Prime, "How could I stay mad at that?" Ratchet smirked; obviously amused that anyone would compare Optimus Prime to a pitiful canine. The tenseness drained out of Optimus's stance, taking her words as the best acceptance of his apology he would get. Truthfully, he wasn't disappointed.

"Shall we have you meet the others, then?" He asked. She nodded before hopping down from the berth she had been sitting on. Ratchet followed, ending up walking behind her as she 'followed the leader'. _'Ha.' _

"But just know, Optimus," She stated, gaining the attention of both mechs, "If I get shot at again, I'm using you as a shield."

(Line break)

At the sound of their metal footsteps all sound in the room past the closed door stopped. It was an eerie contrast to the loud yelling that the three had heard on the way down the hall. The two Autobots and the human girl gone Decepticon shared quick glances before the door opened. Optimus went in first. When she hesitated for too long Ratchet gave her a push. Not expecting it, she stumbled into the room. She made sure to give his smirking face one of her dirtiest looks before she looked around nervously.

Prime still stood in front of her and slightly to the side. He was close enough that if someone tried to attack her again he could prevent it. Ironhide was leaning against the wall next to the door, arms crossed. Ratchet had finally walked into the room and stood at the other side of the door. Mudflap and Skids were whispering loudly to each other on the other side of the room, quickly glancing at her from time to time. She groaned internally. She hoped they were just telling their suspicions to each other. Sideswipe was sitting at a table, staring at her nonchalantly and hiding his curiosity. Sitting on the opposite side of the large table, small compared to Cybertronians, was Wheeljack. His face was openly curious and she could practically see the gears work in his head. Prowl was standing in front of the wall across from her, gaze calculating. Standing close to Prowl was another Autobot. She wracked her brain to try and remember who else could be there when the name Mirage came to her. Another was twitching, his eyes darting back and forth. She guessed this was Red Alert and smirked internally. She saw someone shift, her eyes immediately darting in that direction. She saw Arcee, but that wasn't what made her tense.

She saw _Bumblebee._ Her eyes darted to the stairs and lifted platforms on the side of the room and did a double take. Standing there was Sam, Mikaela, Maggie, Glen, Will Lennox, Robert Epps and John Keller. She quickly turned and walked right out of the room. Prime's head turned around quickly to see her retreating form. He looked between Ratchet and Ironhide, silently questioning. Ironhide shrugged while Ratchet just continued to stare at the door.

She walked down the hall quickly and turned the first corner. She stopped and just stood there. Then she jumped up in down quickly, letting out a silent scream. Surely she could act crazy and fan-girly by herself, right? But no way in hell would she ever let them see her like this. She cycled her vents, the closest thing she had to taking a deep breath before letting it out. Then she went back. She waved off Optimus's questioning stare. He felt the need to ask anyway.

"Is there something wrong?" He had just been wondering if he had to follow her before she had come back.

"No." She said quickly, "Everything's fine. I just wasn't expecting…" She waved her hand towards Bumblebee and the humans in a 'you know' gesture. She took another look at the humans. Sam was fidgeting but that was nothing new. She watched at Mikaela reached and grabbed Sam's hand, smiling at him when he looked up. Maggie and Glen were speaking to each other quietly. Will and Epps stood on either side of Keller, their faces shifting between curious, uncomfortable, and blank. Keller had a small smile on his face in greeting. She felt her metallic lips curl pleasantly in response before looking away.

"Why wouldn't you expect them?" Prowl questioned, assessing.

"Why would you shoot me?" She bit back, glaring.

"Why would you use human slurs on Optimus Prime?" He countered back. She heard a straggled sound come from where the humans were.

"Damn, that mofo got some balls." Mudflap stated loudly.

"Huge balls." Skids agreed, nodding his head. She couldn't help the snort of laughter that left her at their comment. They looked at her, surprised. Most times their comments were ignored. Once it was clear that she wasn't going to continue the back and forth with Prowl, Prime decided to speak.

"As you have all been informed briefly," He motioned to her, "This is _not _Megatron."

"You can't possibly believe that." Red Alert blurted out. "Prime, just look at him! If he looks like Megatron and sounds like Megatron then he must be Megatron! What you told us couldn't be possible."

"It is illogical." Prowl added, staring her down, "He could just be waiting for the right moment to kill us all. For all we know the other Decepticons are on their way here as we speak."

"Yes, I'm so the one to worry about when you have a trigger happy cop car over there." She said sarcastically. It didn't really bother her that they kept calling her a guy. She, as an avid online chatter, had chatted as a boy, girl and everything in between. It didn't really matter enough for to correct them yet.

"…The bond is not there." Prime said softly after Prowl's exclamation of indignation. There was a pregnant pause after this admission. With all of her knowledge from fanfiction, she knew what he was talking about immediately. _'So that brother bond thing is true. I wonder what else is.'_

"Could he have blocked it?" Red Alert asked tentatively. She rolled her eyes and threw up her hands dramatically before plopping down on the floor. She gave the now twitching Red Alert a _look_.

"You're stupid." She said bluntly. He sputtered while some mechs and humans alike tried to stifle their laughter.

"You… you could kill us!" He yelled, glancing at the other in an attempt to make _someone_ see how much of a _bad idea _this was. "One blast of your cannon in any one of our backs would-"

"About that," She cut him off and looked at the Autobot leader that towered over her sitting form. "I have absolutely no idea how to do _anything_ in this body. No internet, none of those little ping boxes, no navigation, no communication link, no weapons. I have absolutely nothing. I'm lucky I was even able to change into my alt form."

"Really?" Wheeljack questioned. Before she could blink he was kneeling by her sitting form. "Mind if I take a look?" She scooted herself backwards quickly and accidently ran into Prime's legs. She looked up at him pitifully.

"He's going to blow me up." She whined. Ratchet snickered and Wheeljack pouted. Optimus looked down at her in bemusement. Just then they heard a door slam. She looked at where the sound had originated from and froze. Climbing up the stairs to the platform was none other than _Galloway_. His faced seemed redder than she remembered as he walked briskly. Besides how confused she was over the timeline by this point, now she felt a deep sense of dread. The Autobots were silent, their body language showing distaste.

"I apologize for my lateness, sir." He said to the Secretary of Defense. His voice was laced with irritation. "It seems that some people don't feel the need to inform me of the recent crisis." He sent a shrewd look toward the 'Bots, Prime especially. She stayed where she was on the floor, reluctant to bring attention to herself even though she was probably the reason he was here.

"Is there a problem?" Optimus questioned, his voice controlled and his stance stern. She shivered slightly at the hard gaze, glad it wasn't directed at her. Too bad Galloway didn't seem to give a _shit_.

"Actually, yes there is, Optimus Prime," He stated while saying the Autobot's name with a slightly mocking tone, "I was not informed of this meeting nor did I give clearance for that _thing_," He waved a hand in her direction and she bristled, "to be allowed on the base."

"Director Galloway," Prime tried to explain but the ignorant man cut him off.

"You have endangered _everyone_ here by allowing that monstrosity on this base. You had no clearance and you had no _right_." He used the tone of an adult scolding a child. Optimus was silent, patient and waiting for the man to finish so he could speak. That enraged her more than the insults that continued to be sent her way. It seemed her sentiments were felt by everyone in the room by their stiff frames. Luckily, Keller decided to cut in.

"Director," He called and got Galloway's full attention, "They have everything under control. He hasn't harmed anyone after coming for help and is not the same as the Decepticon that waged war on our planet." He was about to retort when she finally decided to speak up.

"You seem to be _horribly_ misinformed." She stated. Prime shot her a warning look; she paused for a second before continuing. "You also don't seem to realize how… _beneficial_ this could be for you and your country." She smiled pleasantly at him. Galloway raised an eyebrow, his body shifting, letting her know she caught his attention.

"I'm listening." He said, prompting her to continue. The Autobots were tense, waiting to see what she would offer the man.

"I am in the body of the Decepticon Leader." She said slowly. "I could easily order them to lay low. You wouldn't have attacks from the Decepticon ranks. Your country would no longer be in danger and you," She looked directly into Galloway's eyes, "Would be the Director that helped in the protection of not just the United States, but the entire globe." She heard his slight intake of breath and knew she got him there. But… just to be sure.

"Or," Her voice changed from pleasant to a darker tone, "I could leave. I wouldn't return to the Decepticons and with no way to contact them or for them to contact me they would most likely give up searching." _'That is, if the Decepticons looked at all.' _"Then either Starscream or Soundwave would take up position as ruler of Decepticons. In other words, you'd be fucked. It's your choice really." She said flippantly, "After all, freedom is the right of all sentient beings." She couldn't help the last quip and the full-fledged smirked that overtook her face. Galloway scowled before mumbling under his breath. Keller's face acquired a smile.

"Well," The Secretary of Defense started, bringing his hands together in a single clap, "Now that that's been decided, I believe introductions are in order." He smiled at her, "My name's John Keller. I am Secretary of Defense for the United States. It's a pleasure to meet you." She stared at him for a moment before ducking her head and speaking.

"Hi." She mumbled, "I kind of know who everyone is already, though." His face lit up in understanding.

"Ah, right. We all are actually very curious about that." Many in the room, humans and mechs alike nodded.

"Would you mind if we asked a few question?" Maggie inquired. Glen's eyes gleamed with excitement.

"First I need to know what movie we're in." She said bluntly.

"Well didn't you say you're going to tell us what happens anyway?" Ironhide asked gruffly. She shot him an annoyed look.

"Yes," She said slowly, "but I need to make sure some people are going to _listen to me_ and _not freak out_ or get _pissed off_." She put a huge emphasis on her words and looked at Optimus deliberately. He blinked his optics at her in surprise. She continued on.

"So I'm guessing by the fact that Galloway is still running this base and with the new 'Bots being here," she motioned towards the Cybertronians that were not a part of the second movie, "that the events in Egypt have already happened?" She questioned warily.

"What do you mean by _still _running this base?" Galloway yelled, stomping towards the railing of the platform.

"Oh," she said cheerfully, "Did I forget to mention that you get replaced?" The Director's mouth fell open yet didn't make any sounds as his face changed colors. She saw Epps and Lennox discreetly bump their fists with each other's, matching smirks on their faces. The twins gave a barely audible whoop.

"We have faced against the Fallen in Egypt, yes." She nodded to herself at the Prime's answer.

"And because the bitchy blonde that serves at Galloway's replacement isn't here yet, I guess we're right before the third movie." She stood up quickly and turned to face Optimus, holding up her clawed hands in the universal signature of surrender.

"Don't be mad." She stated, stared right into his bright blue optics. The serious and cautious tone she used caught everyone's attention. They all shifted into more ridged stances.

"Why would I be angry?" The Prime asked hesitantly.

"Don't. Be. Mad." She forced each word out, "Promise me." He nodded and braced himself for whatever she was about to say.

"The humans have been keeping something from you."


	3. Chapter 3

They hadn't believed her.

The blind fury and the crushing disappointment that had slammed into her when the 'Bots had vehemently refused her words was more than she could take. Red Alert had immediately started spouting theories about _'the Cons wanting to pin us against each other'_ and _'invading our secret base with obvious lies'_. She stood there, unmoving as countless and foul words were spoken about her, staring at them in incredulity. Many seemed tense, waiting for her response to the twitchy mech's accusations. She had no words to express how angry she was and not only at Red Alert. Every movement the Autobots and humans made only heightened her agitation. She could see every shift, every flexing muscle, and every turning gear.

They all _**infuriated **__her_.

In the same moment Red Alert had started speaking her mind seemed to slow. She took everything in with crystal clarity. She saw Bumblebee shift slightly so he was in a better defensive position, guarding the humans they all trusted. She heard Ironhide move, nothing more than a twirl of a gear but she knew he was also protecting the humans from a distance. Prowl had kept slipping in comments to Optimus Prime, clearly stating he was on the same side as Red Alert. Many others just waited for the inevitable first move.

They did not have to wait long.

"Forget it." She stated curtly, cutting Red Alert off mid-rant. She turned, headed for the door and lifted one hand as she walked out. "So long."

Once she was in the hallway she bolted in the direction that Ratchet and Optimus had brought her. She doubted the Autobots would let her just leave, especially when they still were under the delusional impression that she was the leader of the Decepticons. She had to get out of here quickly. It seemed her hunch was correct when she heard pounding, metal feet leave the main hanger from a distance. She had already turned the first corner at the end of the long hall that led to the room everyone was gathered in. Then she heard a curious sound. Was that a burst of static? What the h- Just then she heard a crackle of electricity coming from the next corner that she was about to turn down. Her optics widened in understanding a half a second before the Autobot lunged out, aiming electrical whips at her. In a show of incredible agility that she _so _did not possess she dodge and raced forward. She could have sworn she saw his optics widen in panic and fear before she gripped the smaller mech's shoulders, and_ vaulted herself over him_.

Her only eloquent thought at that moment was, '_Fuck yeah.'_

It seemed the move surprised her attacker even more than herself. Then again, maybe the fact that her push off had caused him to fall forward on his hands and knees helped a little. He looked over his shoulder to watch her retreating form in shock. She waved at him cheerfully before continuing her way to freedom.

"Bye, Jolt!" She called back before she turned left at the next door. She heard the burst of static from behind her again, only to hear an echoing burst in the direction she was headed towards. She let out an irritated noise before searching quickly for any place an Autobot could jump out of.

But it wasn't an Autobot she should have been looking for.

She stopped dead in her tracks when she saw the little, blue RC Truck. The truck stopped moving in the same instant. She wasn't sure if the pause was awkward or not. She was fighting every instinct that told her to pick him up and spew love all over the unappreciated little Decepticon. Though, she had a feeling that wouldn't go over well. Another burst of static, sounding somewhat angry and panicked at the same time, from Wheelie made her come back to herself. She heard the sounds of approaching 'Bots and not just from Jolt's direction. She assumed they had split up to find her. She realized quickly that she couldn't go forward or back the way she came.

'_But what about up?' _

The thought struck her like lightening. She would have facepalmed if she had the time. She looked up, coming to the conclusion that she was _much_ harder than the metal ceiling. She concentrated, hoping, _praying_ that she would be able to transform with less trouble this time.

Fate was _finally _on her side.

She felt her body come apart, separating into millions of self-aware pieces that moved fluidly and gracefully clicking into place. In this mode she could see in all directions at once, disorienting but useful in this case. When the last gear twirled into the right position she saw Jolt, Ironhide, and Prowl come from the direction she had run from. At the same moment Optimus Prime who was flanked by Sideswipe and Ratchet came from the opposite end of the long hallway. Then their leader shot forward at a faster pace when he saw what form she was in, optics widened in an unknown emotion.

So she gunned it.

Her engine came to life with a ferocious roar. The tip of her plane pulled backward as she moved; now aiming straight up in mid-flight. Optimus reached out a long arm, looking like he was about to pluck her out of the air.

But she slipped right through his fingers.

She ripped through metal as if it was only thin, plastic covering and shot out into the sky like a bullet. A part of her spirit soar, loving the freedom of flight and from the base that could just have been her prison. But another part dropped into despair.

Who could she turn to now?

(Line Break)

He had been so close. If had only been a few Nano-clicks sooner he could have stopped him from leaving. He knew that mech wasn't his brother. It just didn't _feel_ quite right. He didn't act like Megatron. Even his brother couldn't fake the emotions he saw. And now a defenseless human was at the mercy of any Decepticon or humans that came across him. Sure, the human was in one of the most influential- not to mention dangerous- Cybertronians on this planet but he was still under constant threat. He had to know it as well, if the aversion to getting into contact with the Decepticons again and the fact that he wanted to get home as soon as possible wasn't clue enough. If he did encounter the 'Cons, as he most likely would, he had no way to defend himself. He had said so and Optimus had still failed to keep him here, keep him protected. As for the threat from other humans, if the person in Megatron's body had any truth to his words, there may be another threat amongst their allies' race. He prayed to Primus that they wouldn't have to deal with another Sector Seven. Their young scout was still wary of every new government official they had been introduced to.

_:: Optimus, this isn't your fault. :: _The Prime sighed as the Medic's words cut through his thoughts over a private communication link.

_:: Maybe not. But whatever happens to him out there is. :: _He could see that Ratchet was about to object but Prowl asked what was on every 'Bot's mind.

"What now, sir?" They all looked at him expectantly. He was their leader, the one to turn to when all seemed lost.

"Can we track him?" He asked.

"Negative, Prime." Ratchet said gravely. "His signal is suppressed. Tracking him is not possible at the moment."

The Prime cycled his vent and brought a servo to his mouth cover. He looked up in thought, only to be met with the sight of the gaping hole in the ceiling.

"Let's regroup. We still need to tell Captain Lennox about the repairs that need to be made." They all, somewhat reluctantly, powered down their weapons and followed the Prime as he started walking back towards the main room.

(Line Break)

"Are you telling me you let _the most dangerous_ one of you aliens _escape?_" Galloway yelled, his face getting redder by the second. "This is the _main Autobot base_ of operations and you couldn't stop _one_ Decepticon from getting away?" The Prime just stared at the small human, silently wondering if the man cared because of the perceived threat to his country or because he could no longer reap the rewards that the 'Decepticon' had offered him.

"Director, I highly doubt they let him get away intentionally." Keller cut in, frowning disapprovingly at the man. "Now I believe we should go contact the president on this new dilemma." The older man then turned to look at the Prime, "We will ask that he contacts us personally in case he is spotted." The Autobot leader nodded his thanks. Galloway sent them one last look before following the Secretary of Defensive down the stairs and out of the room.

There was a brief silence before Sargent Epps let out a snort, muttering something about a _'greedy asshole.'_ Lennox nodded in agreement.

"My apologies about the ceiling, Major Lennox." Optimus Prime intoned. Will waved him off.

"No problem, Boss Bot. And don't worry, we'll find him." The Prime looked at the Major, seeing nothing but determination and support.

"Thank you."

(Line Break)

Why couldn't she even _try _to think before she acted?

Only after the adrenaline rush had worn off did she realize that she was even more fucked then she was when she woke up this morning. She had alienated not only the Decepticons- because let's face it, they would no doubt be pissed that she had left during patrol, thus leaving the base unguarded- but the Autobots as well. And the only humans that knew about Autobots and Decepticons were either with the Cybertronians-

-Or against them.

She was so fucked.

(Line Break)

What felt like hours later she had started to wonder how long she really had been flying. An internal clock suddenly pinged into her vision. The thing had scared the shit out of her and almost made her plummet into the hard ground. Once she had regained her equilibrium she mentally peered at the rectangular box with strange symbols on it. Immediately after she deemed them unrecognizable they started to morph into familiar numbers. She looked at the numbers again and saw they told her that she had been correct in her estimation. She would have blinked in surprise if she still had the luxury. Was doing things in this body really that easy?

'_Where am I?_' She tested and was ready for the ping that popped up this time. It said she was somewhere over Colorado. How the hell had she gotten there that fast? In fact, how had she gotten to the Autobot base that quickly before? That is, unless this new body had messed with her sense of time. She didn't even remember if the sky had changed colors. Could she really have been so oblivious? She quickly scanned the landscape far below her.

She saw mountains in the distance, her limited knowledge of geography telling her that they were the Rocky Mt. She sped up, remembering that in the one animated series that the Decepticons had hidden in a cave of a mountain. But this was the movie-verse so none of them should be there.

Right?

She mentally shook her head. There wouldn't be any Decepticons there but it was still as good of an idea as any for a hiding place. If the Autobots wouldn't suspect it in the animated series why would they suspect it now? Plus humans usually wanted to climb mountains- not going into the creepy caverns. And she would make sure she went far back enough in case any dimwitted and curious humans decided to investigate.

'_Now, where can I find a cave?'_ Suddenly a red light shot out from somewhere on her body; scanning the mountain quickly while she tried to stop another mounting panic attack. God damn, couldn't this body _warn_ her before it did shit? A large grid then covered her line of sight, not blocking the mountains but adding to it. There were red dots indicating each cave entrance, little pings boxes connected to the dots by a line. In each of the boxes were stats on each cave on each mountain. There were a couple caves up closer by the tops. By the surrounding scenery she could guess that it was either summer or spring- which would explain why the Tooth Fairy girl was in Texas and not in school while she was supposed to be in California, probably on vacation during a break- but there was still snow at the top.

And that's when it happened.

She felt shivers rack her frame, her whole body feeling like it was going cold. Suddenly the jet engines stalled but she didn't notice. Her mind was racing, flickers of images depicting ice crumbling beneath her while she screamed. Everything was freezing, her heart pounding against her rib cage as she tried to bring herself back out of the icy water. Her arms and legs slowed as she sank, unable to keep herself from falling deeper and deeper-

-Then she was dying.

Everything went black slowly, her body finally stopped moving; too cold to struggle anymore. She heard far away blaring and warning sounds but she paid them no heed. She couldn't bring herself to care anymore. She was dying, it was over.

And she couldn't help but feel she deserved it.

That's when she felt herself smack into the ground, grass and other earthly debris spraying around her as she let out a scream of agony. She heard a sickening snap and brought up a clawed hand- when had she transformed back?- to her right wing. She turned her head in the direction of the flaring _pain_. She almost tested if she could purge when she saw the condition of the appendage. It was bent at an odd angle. Part of the tip had broken off, only held to her body by cables. The same cables that were bleeding a puddle of energon on the uneven ground.

'_Oh god.'_

She was still half stuck in the word under the ice and this morbid vision of her twisted up in agony. She needed help. She needed warmth. She needed _protectors_.

So her body sent out a distress signal without her approval.

_**:: Pain. Hurts. Bleeding. Dying. Coldcoldcoldcold. Whirl Click Click Churrrrrrrrrp. ::**_

She was so cold.

Wait.

Why was she cold?

She had a stunning moment of clarity and the ice world vanished for the moment, leaving her to stare at the blaring ping boxes in her vision. One that caught her attention was the one that stated all forms of communications had been opened.

(Line Break)

Starscream was _furious_.

How could that old bucket of rust and bolts put _Soundwave_ the _Third in Command_ in charge? Why didn't their _glorious leader_ amend his order when he had refused to take him on patrol?

_:: The patrol that slagger didn't even go on! ::_

Everyone would pay for his mood. He had returned to main room hours before, his fury still not burning out at the injustice. And every time he would bring up a new objection to Soundwave's temporary authority the mech would just replay the recording of Megatron's order. So Starscream now settled for venting his frustrations on his trine over their bonds. Thundercracker and Skywarp were forced to hear their brother's ranting since Megatron's jet had left the Air Commander's sight.

_:: Slag that glitching frag- :: _Starscream was cut off by a symphony of static coming from every Decepticon, all receiving the same message.

_**:: Pain. Hurts. Bleeding. Dying. Coldcoldcold. Whirl Click Click Churrrrrrrrrp. ::**_

Every mech in the room was deadly silent. Then the sea of uproar broke out. Decepticons were yelling in a mix between Earth languages and Cybertronian.

"**A youngling?!"** One of the 'Cons screamed as his head whipped towards Soundwave, **"You never said anything about younglings on this planet!" **

"**Reasoning: We did not know about any younglings on Earth." **The Third in Command responded monotonously, **"Suggestion: Stop accusing so we may find the youngling before it perishes." **Many 'Cons flinched at the thought. With the brief message they had been sent they could only wonder how much time it had left. Though Decepticons they were, with the destruction of the Allspark and the dwindling number of Cybertronians, none of them wanted to leave the most likely last youngling to die.

"**My trine would be able to make it to the coordinates faster than any of you could." **Starscream stated, only a hint of a sneer making its way to his faceplates. If his trine saved the youngling then everyone would see he was far more competent than any _ground pounder._

"**Lord Megatron's communication link has been opened." **Soundwave informed, **"We will asks for his orders on the matter."**

"**But the young-" **Starscream started, voice high pitched before he was cut off.

"**Lord Megatron may be closer." **The Third in Command intoned logically.

"**Like Pit!" **Starscream shrieked, **"That fragger is losing his touch, he couldn't even **_**transform**_** right! Let alone bring a youngling back here." **There was a pregnant pause at Starscream's withheld information. Then a shout from their medic who had been hanging back in the corner rang out.

"**You let our Lord leave when he was glitching? Who knows what could be wrong with him! You should have brought him to the medical bay **_**immediately."**_Starscream scoffed at Hook, voice dripping with sarcasm as he responded.

"**Oh yes, and our **_**great **_**and **_**glorious leader **_**would have gone without a problem."**

"**Enough." **Soundwave ordered, Starscream bristled but the mech continued, **"This is getting us nowhere. I shall contact Lord Megatron." **He looked at the three seekers, **"Go. It is logical to send you in case our Lord is not there. We must get the youngling before the Autobots hear of it." **Starscream sneered at the order before leaving, his brothers flanking him on either side.

(Line Break)

Optimus was getting more worried and stressed as time went on with no sign of the human gone Decepticon. They assume that he would be spotted soon. He had no extensive experience in the body of a Cybertronian with only the same alt form at his disposal. With every United States and Allied satellite, along with all Cybertronian means they had, looking for him they thought it wouldn't be long.

But hours later the Prime wasn't so sure.

After many tries to see if he could somehow contact the human through the no longer working- but not broken, never broken- brother bond he finally sat down on one of the large sitting areas they had constructed with a sigh. The Second in Command looked up then, staring at their Prime before moving over, sitting near him.

"We'll find him, sir. He can't hide forever." Prowl stated surely, waiting for the leader of the Autobots to respond.

"But what condition will be in when we finally do?" Optimus wondered, "He has no energon and already stated he would not go back to the Decepticons. Even if they don't find him, I still fear we may be too late."

"It's too early to be thinking the worst, Prime." Ironhide's gruff voice called over. "The guy can last. Even humans can stand a couple days without eating."

"When did you start learning about humans?" Ratchet asked rhetorically, snorting in amusement at the Weapons Specialist's harsh sounding retort to 'mind his own slagging business' before turning back to the worrying leader. "But he is right, Optimus. The human can last."

"Yeah, we don't go down that easy, Boss Bot." Will said, still on the platform with the remaining humans and two small Cybertronians that consisted of Epps, Sam, Mikaela, Wheelie, and Brains. Glen and Maggie had left shortly after Galloway and Keller, stating that they could help better from their jobs the government had assigned them.

Optimus did feel better, only somewhat embarrassed that he was despairing so early and had to comforted. But all feelings of comfort disappeared with the chorus of static, all 'Bots going rigid as the messaged played.

_**:: Pain. Hurts. Bleeding. Dying. Coldcoldcold. Whirl Click Click Churrrrrrrrrp. ::**_

Bumblebee was, surprisingly, the first to respond.

"_Uh-oh." _A little girl's voice said, sounding foreboding in the eerie silence that had descended over the group. Another well-known clip then played. _"Houston, we have a problem."_

"What?" Sam questioned nervously, eyes darting to each frozen mech, "What's wrong?" He asked, voice cracking. Ironhide seemed to come back to life, cussing loudly in Cybertronian. Everyone else jolted back to themselves at the tirade.

"**A youngling! A slagging youngling was right under our nose this whole fragging time and we didn't even **_**notice! **_**Slag it all to the **_**Pit!**_**"**

"**Just because a youngling calls after Megatron leaves doesn't mean it's him!" **Red Alert protested, slipping back into Cybertronian. He got blank and unbelieving stares for his denial.

"**How many times do we have to tell you that he isn't Megatron?" **Ratchet asked exasperated, bringing a servo up to pinch the bridge of his nose plate.

"**Well if he is the youngling then how didn't you know?" **Red Alert protested. Ratchet's optics flared, staring at the twitchy 'Bot. He seemed about to reply with a harsh retort but was cut off by an irritated human femme.

"Are you guys going to tell us anything or not?" Mikaela asked, gaining ever Autobot's attention. Wheelie mumbled something about a 'brave warrior goddess' before Optimus spoke.

"We all receive a distress signal from a youngling." He informed them all.

"An _injured _youngling," Ratchet corrected, "No doubt he needs medical attention if the message was anything to go by."

"Wait," Sam interjected, "How can you tell it's a kid?"

"At a certain age Cybertronians are unable to make the certain sounds. One of them is a youngling or sparkling's cry of distress." Ratchet informed, "We have to move quickly, Prime." Ratchet said, turning to the Autobot leader, "I have no doubt that we weren't the only ones to receive the signal."

Optimus nodded. Just then a ping box entered his vision, informing him that the person in Megatron's body had unblocked his communication systems.

"We have contact." Optimus told everyone, "Ratchet, Ironhide, Prowl, Sideswipe, Wheeljack and Bumblebee prepare for any obstacles we may face. We leave in five minutes."

While most the Autobots chosen to go rushed about the human Will looked at Ironhide in confusion.

"I thought no new Cybertronians had come to this planet." He said and the others who had not understood the first half of the conversation nodded along with him, looking at the Weapon's Specialist for answers.

"None have." Ironhide responded, staring down at them in a way that told them they were missing the big picture. Sam's eyes then widened.

"The guy? He's a kid?" He gasped out. Will's head jerked to look at the boy who had saved the world twice, understanding dawning on his features too. The Top Kick nodded.

"How old is he?" Will asked, feeling a pang in his chest at the thought of a child going through this. Of how much he would worry and panic if his daughter had just up and disappeared.

"We will have to wait and see." Arcee said softly, having moved towards the human's during the conversation.

(Line Break)

Once the five minutes was up and the NEST soldiers and Autobot mechs were ready to go they headed out on a large cargo plane to get there faster, hoping to get to the human before the Decepticons. They also had two civilians with them, despite the protest made by Galloway and some Autobots. Sam and Mikaela were only permitted to go because they really had no time to argue. Wheelie had clambered into the Camaro after Mikaela, Brains following because he refused to be left behind.

"So where are we headed, anyway?" Sam asked.

"The signal came from the Rocky Mountains in Colorado." Wheeljack informed, tinkering with one of the weapons on his arm.

"Optimus said we had contact, can we call him now?" Mikaela's concerned voice questioned.

"It would be beneficial to know the amount of damage he has sustained." Ratchet added for good measure.

"I will try reaching him." Their leader replied.

(Line Break)

Her whole body wracked with pain. Now that she had complete consciousness the agony of her torn extra limb hit her like a train wreck. She almost wished she still had the numbing sensation she had in the ice flashback. Damn Megatron's Post Traumatic Stress Disorder. She tried to focus on what the ping boxes were saying.

**Damage: Critical.**

**Energon Level: 23% and dropping.**

**Medical attention required.**

She jolted suddenly, groaning loudly in distress when her wing was moved, when she heard a burst of static. Her eyes darted toward the surrounding area before she realized the sound was coming from her. Two more boxes shot up in her line of vision. She blinked slowly at them.

**Soundwave. **

**Third in Command of the Decepticon Army. **

**Requesting communications with Lord Megatron, Leader of the Decepticons.**

**Status: Urgent.**

**Optimus Prime. **

**Leader of the Autobots Army. **

**Requesting communications with Lord Megatron, Leader of the Decepticons.**

**Status: Urgent.**

Now the only question was which she should address first or if she should even accept either of the calls. Whatever they wanted couldn't be good if their statuses were anything to go by. But she couldn't just ignore them. That would only make the Decepticons more suspicious and she could only imagine what Optimus Prime could find that urgent. But her cover needed to be protected before she could take the time to quell Optimus' worries. And besides, if the Prime's problem had anything to do with the Decepticons then she could kill two birds with one stone.

'_Accept Soundwave's call.'_

_:: What is it, Soundwave? :: _She asked gruffly.

_:: Situation: youngling distress signal sent out to every Decepticon. Theory: signal may have been sent out to Autobots as well. Solution: an order was given to Starscream and his trine to find the youngling before the Autobots do. Query: Lord Megatron's location in accordance to the unknown youngling? ::_

_:: Youngling? What young- ::_ She cut off abruptly.

"_No way." _

_:: My lord? :: _

_:: Where is the youngling? :: _She questioned harshly, trying to fight off the mounting panic. They couldn't mean her, could they?

_:: Location: Rocky Mountains in Colorado. ::_

'_Fuck.' _She had to move and she had to move _now_.

_:: Okay, thanks. Bye. :: _She said quickly, hanging up before he could respond. Optimus's box filled her vision again before she accepted that one too.

(Line Break)

It took longer than he would have liked, but Optimus couldn't help the overwhelming sense of relief when the person in his brother's body finally accepted his call.

_:: We are in route to your position. :: _He informed the second the connection was opened. _:: We received your distress signal. What is the extent of your damage? ::_ An irritated noise traveled over the link before the human responded.

_:: Put me on speaker. :: _He said quickly. The Prime looked at the 'Bots that were waiting for his report.

"He wishes to be put on speaker." Prime stated, relayed the injured one's message. With a nod from Ratchet he did so.

"Everyone can hear you now."

"_Really? Awesome." _Megatron's dark voice resonated from the Autobot leader's speakers.

"What is the extent of your damage?" Ratchet questioned, his voice was calming as he talked to his soon-to-be patient.

"_Well,_" The voice drawled, _"I highly doubt my wing is supposed to bend and dangle the way it is now." _Many Cybertronians cringed, minds racing with the many different ways it could be mangled.

"You sound calm for a little kid." Sideswipe stated. A snort sounded over the radio.

"_I'm old enough to not be referred to as _little." He corrected, _"By the way, my energon level is at 18% now. Ratchet, you should probably tell me what to do before I hit zero." _The medic stiffened at the small percentage. At this rate the youngling would go into stasis lock. He wondered if the human new that hitting zero meant death.

"It would be better if you don't move. You'll only lose energon more quickly." Ratchet replied, already sorting out the tools he would need from subspace to keep his hands busy. "We will be there soon."

"_Fuck that."_ Before anyone could respond there was a resounding scream that made its way through the communication link. All heads that weren't looking in the Prime's direction snapped to attention. The connection cut off abruptly, stopping the scream at its height.


	4. Chapter 4

**Disclaimer: Only because I have to. **

**Note: Chapters 3, 4, 7, 8, and 9 are being reposted due to gramatical errors.**

"_Son of a bitch!" _She screeched and doubled over, now on her hands and knees instead of her back. She had stupidly tried to get up. Now she was paying for it. The anger and the pain combining in a sickeningly, twisted emotion of loathing at the entire situation she was in. She hissed; fire racing up and down her form. She vaguely realized her connection with the Autobots had cut off. She couldn't help the forced laugh that left her at the thought. She groaned then, finally looking over to see how her wing had taken the movement. It was the moment of truth, to see if she could really go on or if she would have to wait and see whoever made it to her first.

She promptly threw up.

Pink bile spread all over the ground. She choked and gagged as the split second image burned itself into her brain. She wouldn't be surprised if Megatron was never able to fly again, though part of her knew if she survived- or even if she didn't, who knew really when Megatron would come back?- it could most likely be fixed. As long as you had a spark intact –not that Optimus and Megatron applied to that rule- you usually could be brought back. Once she had calmed down from her fit she looked back up slowly, shuddering as her optics evaluated her mangled wing.

One of the cables had snapped, drenching the twisted and dangling parts in energon. The hanging metal was straining the remaining cables while the majority of the wing still connected to her was limp, digging into her side on an angle. In a few words, it wasn't pretty.

But she still needed to get out of here. No matter how much it hurt she couldn't have the Autobots and Decepticons clash. Who knew what would happen when the plot was so messed up? The three seekers were outnumbered but the Autobots were at a disadvantage since their priority would be fixing her and their enemies would be in the air. She also grudgingly had to admit that she didn't want either side to be harmed in the up and coming fight.

She knew she couldn't walk, not like this. The wing might finally snap completely in half. But she couldn't turn into her jet alt either. Not only wouldn't it work but the wing would still be a problem. If only she had another-

She froze completely, remembering something vaguely from the second movie after Megatron had fled the warehouse Starscream had brought Sam. Didn't he have another alt form? Could Cybertronians have more than one alt form? She realized how stupid that question was. Of course they could! Just because they changed it doesn't mean the information would be erased from their memory. There was another alt somewhere in his coding. She just had to find it.

**Optimus Prime.**

**Leader of the Autobots.**

**Demanding immediate communications with Lord Megatron, Leader of the Decepticons.**

**Status: Extremely Urgent.**

She withheld her snort at the new writing in the ping box and ignored it for the moment. She didn't have time to hear them yell at her. She needed to find the scans of anything else he had. She blinked when two new alt forms popped up. One of them was what looked like a savage tank. But with how slow it would probably go that would be more of a hindrance than anything else. She looked at the other one, optics widening in surprise. It said it was Mack 10-wheeler tanker truck. She noted how it looked like a demented version of Optimus's alt form. It was perfect.

She braced herself for the pain she knew she was going to feel before changing. She felt apart into millions of tiny, agonized pieces. But pieces with a goal, pieces that never wanted to experience this again. If they stopped now they would just have to suffer through it when she made a second attempt. Metal swirled around each other, quickly and efficiently the last gear twirling into place.

And she _screamed._

It was complete torture. All of her body cried out in protest. It was one thing to have a million little pieces sharing the pain, dealing with it together but a totally different thing to have it slam into one consciousness. She would have arched her back in pain if she still had the ability. When the fiery storm finally dulled back into just a burning ache her alt mode was left shuddering. She breathed out harsh sobs, willing herself to calm down. Just then another one of those _damn ping boxes _showed up in her vision. She stared at it, the world coming in and out of focus around her.

**Damage: Critical.**

**Energon Level: 14%. Condition: Stabilized.**

**Internal Healing: Online.**

**Medical Attention Required. **

'_Stabilized?' _She thought and would have grinned as the events turn in her favor. _'Ratchet's going to be so pissed.'_ A barking laugh escaped her as she slowly and carefully drove over the uneven terrain. It was awkward at first, but she managed. She remembered seeing a road a little ways back. A plan quickly formulated in her head. Once she reached the road she finally accepted the Prime's previously ignored call.

_:: Turn around. You're headed straight towards where the seekers are in route. :: _She practically felt Prime about to object before she continued. _:: And before you start, I'm already on my way out of the area. You would be deliberately putting yourself, the humans, and the Autobots in danger for nothing. ::_

_:: What do you mean you're heading out of the area? :: _A voice that was definitely not the Autobot leader's yelled angrily through the link. It seems like the Prime hadn't taken her off of speaker. _:: You are in no condition to walk; you could lose your wing! ::_

_::Well then, Ratchet,:: _She drawled out with a hint of a smirk in her voice, _:: It's a good thing I'm not _walking_ then, isn't it? ::_ There was a pregnant pause on the other side of the line before Ratchet positively _roared_. She probably would have found it less hilarious if she was actually standing in front of the mech.

_:: You changed into your alt form? Do you have _any idea _how dangerous that is? I'm surprised you're still online. Honestly, do any humans have even an iota of self-preservation? You're still leaking energon; you _need_ medical attention _immediately!_ :: _

_:: Isn't that what Hook is for? ::_ She asked quietly, not at all chastised but still wary of their reactions to her seemingly innocent question. She heard a snarl over the link, only for it to be drowned out by the Prime's hesitant voice.

_:: Hook is a Decepticon, young one. :: _She snorted, as if she didn't know Hook's allegiance while metaphorically biting her tongue at the comment of her age.

_:: Your point? ::_ She questioned calmly.

_:: You're picking Decepticons over Autobots? :: _Prowl's accusing voice called through. She didn't respond. Was she picking a side? No. She wanted to just get answers, preferably after stopping some of the characters from dying, and get home. Was that really so bad? She didn't want to fight either of them, and not only because she didn't fancy getting shot at all the damn time.

_:: I am picking Freedom over Imprisonment. ::_ She settled on, voice confident in her choice. She realized how ironic it was that the roles were switched in this particular instance. In that moment the _Decepticons_ actually seemed like the better and safer choice.

_:: I believe you are mistaken- ::_ The Prime started, trying to make her understand that they wanted nothing more than to protect the innocent.

_:: Really, Prime? Are you so sure? I don't recall getting shot, threatened, and imprisoned while on the Nemesis. Can't say the same for the Autobot HQ though, can I? ::_ She knew she was being unfair, she really did. But when she knew she was right she would argue her point to death.

_:: Kid, :: _Will Lennox's voice said over the line: the captain was frowning, if his tone had any indication. _:: You can't be serious. You yourself said that you were a fan. You have to know what those 'Cons are capable of. ::_

_:: And as a fan, I also know how far some Autobots would go when they perceive a threat. :: _She countered evenly.

_:: If that is your choice, we must honor it. :: _Optimus's voice intoned, sounding solemn, _:: But know, if you come with us you have nothing to fear. You cannot say the same if you chose the Decepticons. ::_ God damn him and his ability to make her feel bad and doubt herself.

_:: I'm not choosing a side, ::_ She protested honestly, _:: I'm doing this for _you, _all of you. I need to fix your plot before something happens that I don't know the outcome of. :: _

_:: You can't help us if you're dead. ::_ Ratchet retorted dryly.

_:: I guess we'll just have to wait and see how things turn out. I will be in contact with you at a later date. Until all are one. :: _She responded before turning off her end of the link. She was done with them all judging her decision. She would come back. She just needed to figure out what was wrong with the plot before she went back the Autobot base.

Phase one of her plan was complete, if they truly did turn around. Now onto phase two.

(Line Break)

The three Seekers landed in the clearing near the Rocky Mountains where energon was splattered all over the ground. They inspected the crater and surrounding cave areas, finding no signs of a youngling.

"**Where the frag could it have gone?" **Starscream spat out, hiding any emotion he could have felt over the loss of a youngling with anger and contempt.

"**There's a chance the Autobots could have gotten to it first." **When Starscream sent a viscous glare at his elder brother Skywarp cut in with a more optimistic comment.

"**Or it could have left on its own." **He sounded hopeful as he looked at his trine. Skywarp couldn't wait to meet the child. Maybe it could be a seeker just like them! He was so excited. It dampened slightly when he remembered it was hurt yet still held the faint hope they would get to meet it.

"**We will split up and scan from the skies. We will meet back here in-"** The Air Commander stopped abruptly when he a ping box blared into his vision.

**Lord Megatron.**

**Leader of the Decepticons.**

**Requesting communications with Starscream, Air Commander and Second in Command of the Decepticon Army.**

**Status: Accept the fucking call already.**

"**Who is it?" **Skywarp asked, having heard the burst of static that made the Second in Command pause. Starscream stared incredulously at the ping box. Instead of answering his younger brother he accepted the call. He'd rather not be punished later for taking too long to reply. His faceplates scrunched up in distaste at the thought.

_**:: Yes, my Lord? ::**_ There was a silence at the other end of the line, hesitating. That perked Starscream's interest. Since when had the Deception leader ever hesitate? Then again, the mech had been acting odd.

_:: Starscream, I need you to come to my location now. ::_ The 'Con bristled before cocking his head to the side. What could be more important than searching for the youngling?

_:: What about the youngling? :: _He asked, changing his language to English like their Leader, voice indignant.

_:: The youngling is already gone and I require your assistance. :: _The Seeker blinked in surprise. How did Megatron know about the missing youngling? And more importantly, did the proud mech just ask for _Starscream's help?_ What was also shock was the fact that Starscream hadn't called him master or any other of the ridiculous titles and the Decepticon leader didn't correct and/or reprimand him. Actually, the mech's voice seemed to be tighter than usual.

_:: Assistance with what, master? ::_ The Air Commander questioned. He figured he shouldn't push to see how many times he could get away without addressing him properly. Though, he wasn't going to head to their leader's location blind.

_:: I need a ride. ::_

(Line Break)

"What do we do now, Prime?" Prowl asked, looking at somber form of the Prime.

"There isn't much we can do." The Autobot leader responded sadly, "The youngling has decided to go to the Decepticons for answers. With no location or signal we have nothing to go on. As he said, we'll just have to wait and see."

The large cargo plane was ordered to turn around, all inside feeling the weight of disappoint and worry lay heavily on their hearts and sparks.

(Line Break)

God could Starscream _bitch._

During the whole flight back she had heard the soft static and grumbled words between the three brothers. She knew they were talking to each other, most likely Starscream whining and insulting her over their private comm. link about his current situation. He had been forced to change into his original form to fly her back to the base, his sharp hand gripping onto her truck form. She didn't say a word the whole trip but would have rolled her eyes many a times if she had the luxury. Starscream had tried asking her questions before he even picked her up off of the street. He had tried asking things like how she had known about the missing youngling or how she had trashed herself to the Pit and back. Starscream had given up after a while of flying uncomfortably. He had also let out little, sly quips the entire time. If she had less self-preservation she probably would have lowered herself to asking 'are where there yet?' like she had done with the Autobots just to get back at the annoying bastard.

She let out a small sigh of relief when they finally reached where she knew the Decepticon base was. Thundercracker let out another burst of static, most likely telling those inside that they required the air hanger/elevator to be brought up. The large room burst from the water and an enormous door opened to let them in. Thundercracker and Skywarp transformed smoothly when they reached the covered platform. Starscream put her down with a thump, brushing his servos against his legs like he had touched something dirty.

She probably would have felt insulted if the completely _human_ gesture hadn't made her want to laugh.

Once the elevator room stilled on the only other stop she rolled straight towards the door and out of the room. Once she was in the hall she picked up some speed. Last time she was here she had remembered how to get from the elevator room to the rec/main room. After going down the dirty, dark halls she finally made it. The door opened with a swish. A few Decepticons looked up, giving her confused looks because she was in her alt form. She didn't feel like transforming in front of all these Decepticons, even though she felt like they could squash her at any moment. First of all, she didn't want to scream like a little bitch in front of all of them because she _knew _she would. Second, she had no clue how far away the medical bay was and didn't feel like being dragged all the way there. Third, if she was being completely honest, she was afraid of feeling that amount of pain again so she was biding herself more time.

She was looking for Hook, her gaze metaphorically scanning over the large amount of Decepticons in the room. She briefly wondered if there really were this many in the beginning of the third movie or if it was another screwed up point in the plot. She had to speak to Soundwave about that later. There wouldn't be any harm about going over the last battle details. One of the larger Decepticons that she identified as Shockwave by his one eye warbled at her. She had absolutely no idea what he said so ignored him. Only after looking at everyone did she realized she had no idea what Hook looked like.

"Hook," She called, not making her alt form look face any one mech. One mech came forward. He was broad and was covered in mostly green and purple paint. "I am in need of medical attention." That seemed to make the mech move faster, leading her out of the rec room while all others stared.

When they finally made it the medical bay the mech chattered something, looking at her in an expectant manner. After a bout of silence Hook frowned down at her, eyes narrowing in a non-menacing way. She shifted awkwardly on her tires under his stare. The 'Con seemed like he was about to ask a question but she figured she rather be in pain than have him learn of her predicament. She transformed, her whole body twanging with sharp bursts of pain until everything was in its proper place. When she was whole she let out a blood-curling scream that she didn't doubt was heard all over the underwater ship. The surgical officer lunged forward then, carefully hauling up her up as she twitched in seizure-like movements. The mech was yelling as he raced around his medical bay, getting all of the equipment he needed to fix her mangled wing. She heard the soft but quick sound of metal hitting metal as a small spider-like 'Con came into her line of vision with a needle. She jerked when Scalpel pierced one of her cables with the sedative. She felt darkness creep in the edges of her sight before she mercifully blacked out.

(Line Break)

When the Seekers had entered the main room at a calmer pace many mechs turned their heads. Some seeing no youngling growled and revved their engines in anger. Many others looked disappointed.

"**Where is the youngling?"** Shockwave warbled out in Cybertronian, his faceplates showing irritation at not being answered by the Decepticon leader when he asked him previously. Starscream moved towards the end of the room with the Decepticon Leader's throne. His brothers moved over to the side of him against the wall. The Air Commander glared at the 'Con who had asked the question.

"**It wasn't there." **He grit out in a snarky tone, **"The only possible signs of it even being there in the first place was the disrupted earth and energon everywhere." **

"**Did you search elsewhere?" **Crankcase questioned, standing near the other Dreads.

"**We checked the caves." **Skywarp spoke, **"Then Lord Megatron called us so we could bring him to the base."**

"**Query: What the extent of Lord Megatron's damage?" **Soundwave's familiar monotone rang out.

"**You mean to his body or to his processor?" **Starscream bit out rhetorically.

"**Lord Megatron has not told us." **Thundercracker answered for his brother. **"He did not speak the whole trip back." **

"**Could he have fought the Autobots for the youngling?" **Crowbar called out. Starscream snorted.

"**What part of our **_**wonderful **_**and **_**glorious **_**leader not telling us anything did you not understand?" **The lower ranked Decepticon glared for a moment but didn't dare do much else. Before Starscream could take his mood out on the mech an energon-freezing scream reverberated through the ship.

"**At lease we know his vocals are working." **Ravage drawled smoothly from his place at Soundwave's peds.

"**Explanation:" **Soundwave stated after a burst of static had reached him, **"Lord Megatron's wing was badly damaged. Reasoning: Unknown." **All Decepticons with flying capabilities in the vicinity flinched, their wings held taunt. Some winced in sympathy.

"**He's going to be in foul mood when they're done."**

(Line Break)

She woke up three days later to the sight of a spider-like Decepticon _right in her face._

She jerked as if she had been burnt, barely keeping in the screech of surprise at the creepy, little, red-eyed menace. The mech chattered something at her and she narrowed her optics at Scalpel. It didn't sound like a jeer. He was probably reciting a status report on her injured body. She figured that they hadn't or couldn't tell that she wasn't Megatron medically if her freedom of movement was anything to go on. The little mech looked at her like she was supposed to answer him.

'_God dammit,'_ She searched her mind for something that could help her. _'Translation, please?'_ She almost laughed when it actually worked.

**Cybertronian to English translation: Online.**

**Listening capabilities: Maximum.**

**Speaking capabilities: Not functioning.**

"Can you repeat that?" Beggars can't be choosers. She was sure they would all be able to understand her if she spoke English. She sat up on the berth, a hand held to her head in grogginess.

"_**I said, **_**Ve have repaired wing. You feel better, yes?" **She blinked at him before nodding. She went to get up but then Hook came back into the room. He had a pink cube in his hand. He handed it to her before moving to her side, seeming to inspect his handy work.

"**Would you mind stretching it, my Lord?" **He questioned, hand hovering over her wing. When she didn't do so immediately he felt the need to explain further, **"I only wish to make sure they are working efficiently." **She flexed her wing; feeling relieved when there wasn't so much as a twinge of pain. The medic gripped the appendage carefully, zeroing in where the tear once was. She looked to her side, taking in the sight of a patched yet healed wing.

"**You have been in recharge for three of this planet's days, Lord Megatron." **She felt her wings droop slightly at that. Optimus would most likely worry. She did say she was going to call him, though she never gave a specific day. She made a thoughtful sound in the back of her throat.

"**May I ask what happened to your shoulder?" **She stiffened when the Medic straightened, his hand coming down the mostly healed shoulder. He took her ridged posture for the flat out no that it was. He moved to the other side of the room, seemingly organizing his tools and varied equipment. She stood put down the pink liquid on the berth, hauling herself up and carefully putting her peds on the ground. When she felt no discomfort she stretched, reaching her arms towards the sky and arching her back. To her surprise her wings folded and molded into her back, as if they were never there in the first place. She was doubtful they could have done that when she was injured. Actually, she was somewhat dumbfounded that she hadn't remembered that in the movies Megatron didn't have his wings out much, if at all. If she had forgotten that, what else was she missing?

"**Everyone is wondering what happened to the youngling." **Hook murmured, looking like he was speaking to himself before he glanced at her.

"**They say you had glitch." **Scalpel piped up. She felt her faceplates twitch in annoyance. **"Ve have found nothing, though. You are… all clear, yes?" **

"I'm fine." She replied. If they thought it odd she answered in English then they didn't give any indication of it.

"Then you are free to go about your business, my Lord."Hook responded in English. She left the room quickly, grabbing the energon he had given her on the way out. If Hook was anything like Ratchet in fanfics then she didn't want to bother him while he was in his med bay. She travelled down the halls, remembering the way back to the rec room easily with her super powered processor. Now if only she could access the internet. She shook her head. Answers first: surfing the web later. At last she made it to the main room but heard muffled, shrill yells on the other side. She cocked her head before the door opened with a swish. She moved inside, quickly looking for Soundwave. Only a few of the Decepticons took the time to look up. She scanned the room with her eyes, finally taking in details that she hadn't taken the time to before when she thought she wouldn't be back.

The room was exceptionally large; every room in the ship seemed to be the same dark shades of purple, grey, silver and black, this room being no different. This base wasn't the cleanest, though. Not that the Autobot base was either, sand having gotten everywhere. There were seats along the farther walls, tables also having been set up. The most extravagant piece of furniture, although, was the throne at the other side of the room that was put up on a circular dais-like structure. The throne itself was black with intricate purple designs over it and big enough that Megatron would have extra room. She cringed internally at the thought of sitting on it. She would have preferred to plop down on the ground than be up there. Once she stopped observing the room she focused on the cause of the shout.

Unsurprisingly, it was Starscream.

"**-still offline! He only ordered that you take control **_**until he gets back**_**. He is back so I should be in charge, not taking orders from a slagging **_**ground pounder**_**."** Starscream threw up his arms when Soundwave didn't so much as twitch. The agitated seeker then turned around, optics widening slightly when they realized she was standing there.

"**Problem: no longer an issue." **Soundwave finally stated. She started walking forward to the two mechs near the throne.

"**M-My Lord," **Starscream sputtered, obviously caught off guard. **"We were all so worried."** She couldn't help the snort she released. When she was next to the Air Commander she lifted a hand, not pausing even when he flinched. She patted the top of his helm like one would do to a child.

"Of course you were." She said, smirking at his indignant expression though he couldn't hide the relief she saw in his optics. Her smirk fell briefly when she noticed it. Her clawed hand fell to her side, clenching for a moment before she let go of her anger. Starscream may have been a traitorous, back-stabbing Decepticon but no one deserves that kind of constant abuse. No one should _expect_ to be hit on a regular basis, to be punished. Most of the time it probably wasn't even his fault in the first place. She was only brought out of her quick thoughts by the sound of something cracking. She looked down to see the pink cube she was holding in her clenched- when had she clenched that hand?- claw had a small crack along the side. Not enough for any of the liquid to come through, but enough to make her hold it more delicately. She glanced up to see the Second in Command had hunched his shoulders, wings held back as if preparing for a blow. Her faceplates twisted into a grimace.

"What are you doing?" She asked the ridged mech. A look of confusion flickered across his face and many others for a moment before Soundwave asked a question of his own.

"**Query: Are you well, Lord Megatron?" **Her head snapped to his direction.

"Why must everyone ask about my health?" She bit out. "I'm perfectly fine. My wing is fine, my shoulder is fine, my vocals are fine, and besides what _some certain mechs_ say," She sent a _look_ at Starscream, "my processor is fine. _And I do not have a glitch._" She snarled the last part out like a curse. Soundwave nodded in compliance. Starscream was very still. She nodded back firmly before taking her first swig of the pink liquid.

And quickly spat it out on the floor.

That had to be one of strangest things she had ever tasted. It was tangy with had a metallic hint. Plus it burned. Not in the, 'oh god I'm on fire' or spicy way but- She couldn't quite describe it. Plus, the after taste was positively _nasty_.

"What the hell did Hook _put _in this?" She barked out, "It's _disgusting_." The metal that served for her upper lip curled in an unpleasant expression. She more or less shoved the pink cube into Soundwave's hands, wanting the gross liquid as far away as possible. Soundwave took the liberty of scanning the cube.

"There is nothing out of the ordinary with the energon."He informed. "You're levels are low, My Lord. Is there any energon you would prefer?" She accessed her energon levels, noting that they were at eighty-three percent. How was that low? She narrowed her eyes slightly and tilted her head as she glanced briefly around the room. She noticed Skywarp looking at the energon with a pitiful expression on his face. Thundercracker was murmuring something to his younger brother. Something didn't add up. She turned back to address the Third in Command.

"How much energon do we have?" A silence descended on the room. It seemed others wished to know how much there truly was.

"Estimation: There is approximately five months' worth for the whole Decepticon army if only indulged in once every Earth week. The high grade taken a few days prior would have sustained us for another month at best." Dread seemed to fill the room, along with muttered curses at the three who she found so amusing a couple days ago. Now she understood why Starscream had been so furious when she hadn't reprimanded them. The Decepticons would be on the brink of starvation in no time flat. They didn't even have half a year before their food was all gone and that was only if they starved themselves. She was very still. She couldn't just let all of these Cybertronians slowly die.

"Has no energon or other form of fuel been found on this planet?"

"No energon readings have been detected. All other fuels will not sustain us for long or have the ability to replace energon." _Shit_. There had to be something. She glanced at the two others in Starscream's trine, feeling even worse at the youngest longing expression.

"What are everyone's levels at?" She inquired to the group. There were calls of percentages between forties through eighties. Most were on the lower end. One mech hadn't answered her, though. She narrowed her eyes in the younger seeker's direction.

"Skywarp," She barked suddenly, making the seeker jump and his optics shoot up to meet hers, "What is your energon level at?" Thundercracker stiffened beside his brother.

"I-It's at twenty-six percent, my Lord." He stuttered out uncomfortably. He didn't seem to be called on directly most of the time. Either that or they didn't want his low percentage to be known by the group. Oh well, too late now. She frowned at the low number before indicating that he should come over to stand in front of the throne that the three highest ranking were. He did so, glancing between his brothers for support. He got a reassuring nod from Thundercracker. Starscream didn't even look at his trine mate, his optics focused on the Decepticon leader and filled with suspicion. She ignored him, calmly taking the energon from Soundwave's and putting it in a surprised Skywarp's hands.

"Drink it." She insisted when he looked like he was about to object, obviously not wanting to take energon that was meant for the Decepticon leader. At the stunned silence at her actions she felt annoyance.

"Starscream, can you explain to me why everyone is so surprised that I wouldn't let my army wither up and die?" Before the Air Commander could think of an extravagant praise or excuse that denounced her previous thoughts she continued, "Has energon been found elsewhere?" She questioned, turning her sights on Soundwave. Skywarp, after gulping down half of his energon had retreated back to his elder brother's side.

"Scouts have been searching on this planet and others but nothing significant has been found, Lord Megatron." She wracked her brain for _something_. She had to have some tidbit of knowledge about energon. But _damn it_, most of what she could reference was from fanfiction and she highly doubted half of it was reliable. Then the niggling thought in the back of her head smacked into her like a ton of bricks. She sucked in a breath she didn't need, optics widening as visions of ice crumbling beneath her played in front of her eyes. She shook the images away this time, stopping the rising panic. She calmly sat herself on large, decorative throne.

"Lord Megatron?" She made a noncommittal noise to let Starscream know she was listening. She was searching her mind for Megatron's memory files. Hopefully they would fill the gaps in the plot holes while at the same time looking for proof of her theory.

"Have you come up with a plan, master?" He hesitated. She was quickly coming to realize he was much more timid in Megatron's fully healed presence. Though, on the flight back she had seen flickers of defiance.

"Possibly." She disclosed. "Why did I land on this planet?" She mused aloud. There were murmurs of confusion from the Decepticons, obviously not understanding what she was getting at.

"For the Allspark, my Lord." Soundwave reminded while she shook her head in bemusement. The perfect picture of someone who knows an inside joke.

"I know," She remarked, "But why did I land where I did when the Allspark was in another continent?" Everyone was quiet, not having an answer and none daring to speak lest they be accused of criticizing their leader. She finally accessed the right file, flickers of a machine that read energon signatures going off while she walked upon frozen tundra, giving her all the proof she needed.

"That is," She murmured, quiet yet still loud enough to carry across the deadly silent room, "unless there was something of worth there." She grinned then as she watched the pieces click together in ever 'Cons mind and the dread in the room seemed to lift as bursts of static and excited chatter filled the room. They had a location, they had food, they had _life_- and with that thought and a laugh bordering on the edge of hysteria she realized she probably just fucked up the plot more.


	5. Chapter 5

Klik: 1.2 minutes.

Orbital Cycles: Earth days.

Orn: 13 days.

Vorn: 83 years.

**Disclaimer: I don't own Transformers.**

Megatron had felt it coming. He had no idea what _it_ was, but the feeling of dread still coiled in his spark. All of his sensors were on high alert and he had scanned himself for viruses more times in the past few orns than he had in _vorns_. He had been on edge since the last battle, where the Fallen had been defeated by _Prime_. During that time he had called Soundwave down from space, feeling more at ease with a mech he knew was loyal to him by his side. Yet, he never gave any indication of it outwardly.

Because of Soundwave's connection to his cassettes, as long as he was still functioning they could be brought back. Hook, another Decepticon he had sent for so he could be scanned by a fully trained medic if he so desired, had been able to reconstruct Ravage with his corpse and other metals that had been found aboard the Nemesis. With the surgical officer's extensive training he was even able to fix Megatron's face and bringing it back to its former, terrifying glory.

Reasoning for the Nemesis as their base instead of the one in Africa was because, after a bout of rising paranoia of the Decepticons and growing agitation at the niggling in the back of his processor, Megatron had decided they needed a new base of operations. Decepticons had been sent out to find a proper place and had gotten exceedingly lucky. One of their useless drones had been scanning the area over the Gulf of Mexico when it had glitched and fallen out of the sky. Far below the surface it had found the cloaked ship, mostly unharmed, uninhabited and ready for use. The Leader of the Decepticons had ordered their immediate base move. A few lower in rank had been left behind to keep the unborn sparklings safe and in temporary stasis, a large portion of their energon rations had been left at the base. Unfortunately, Megatron's feelings of danger had only increased with the change; still he would not make them go back. He had to stay firm in his decisions. Mostly because Starscream had complained about the entire move in the first place, stating its flaws and he would be slagged before he admitted his Second in Command was right.

To hopefully quell his trepidation –because Megatron did not _fear _anything- he had their Communications Officer, Soundwave, send out a transmission for more Decepticons to come to Earth. He would make his forces largely outnumber the Autobots and then he would have nothing to worry about.

But nothing helped.

With orbital cycle, with every new Decepticon brought to this planet, his paranoia and processor ache only increased. If he didn't know any better, he thought he could _feel _another conscious drift against his own. It felt like nothing he had ever experienced before. It wasn't the same as a bond; this was much more personal, more connected-

-More _invading_.

He kept many mechs away from him, the only ones he ever conversed with being Soundwave and Starscream. Soundwave; so they could confer on battle plans, scouting missions for energon and other things. Starscream; so he could vent his frustrations. They could go banter, they could argue, he could finally _blame_ something for how he was feeling even it was misdirected. Megatron could hit him to forget his aggravation –_because Megatron feared nothing_.

It only got worse.

He started to see flickers; images that he knew couldn't be his own. At first they were only in the corner of his optics or amongst the shadows. So few and far between that he could fool himself into thinking they were never there in the first place. He refused to go to Hook or Scalpel with his problem. He did not have a glitch; he scanned himself enough to know. The flickers became more frequent. Scenes played quickly before his optics; a blur of sights he had never seen, fleshlings he had never met, and mechs he had –Autobot and Decepticon alike- having conversation he would have never known about. Still, his scans showed nothing.

One day, he had hidden away in an empty storage room that had yet to be put to use so he could think without Starscream whining in his audio receptor or having to send darting glances at every mech that twitched. He tried to think back, to find a reason for all of this. Surely _something_ had to be the cause. He searched his memory files, studying them for any unusual behavior amongst himself or his soldiers. There were many significant things that had happened since the fight in Egypt. The two factions had clashed once in a while, neither giving an inch. There were the new arrivals and the big move. There was the destruction of the prototype space bridge-

-The one he had tested when they gave the all clear.

Shockwave was one of the main Decepticons that helped created a working space bridge, stating that it was logical since the Decepticons without flying capabilities had to go through the ocean to get anywhere. It would be efficient for battles or for just getting of the slagging underwater base without rust being an issue. Shockwave spent most of his time on it, testing it thoroughly before he presented it to their leader. When showing it to Megatron and Starscream he had used a drone that sent signals back to the base to show that it was functional. The fragger then convinced Megatron it was perfectly safe to use. He had set up the machine for another attempt, asking if either of them wanted to try. Starscream had sneered, but Megatron was intrigued. The space bridge let out a _whir_, signaling that it was ready for use. The Decepticon Leader had walked right up to the space bridge, steadily making his way down the elongated portal.

Half-way though, the machine let out a horrid sound akin to gears grinding and stalled. Megatron had felt a whoosh as the space bridge disengaged. He thought nothing of it at the time, even as small shocks of electrical discharge skittered across his frame before disappearing. He had glared at Shockwave and threatening him, before leaving it as a lost cause for now, filling it away as another failure one if his subordinates had made and nothing more.

Megatron was going to _murder_ Shockwave.

He never got the chance to even try. The presence in his mind that he had mostly suppressed had crept up on him. He doubled over as his mind was attacked; suddenly and violently. His mind was taken over before he could retaliate. His optics offlined as he fell to the floor with a clang.

(Line Break)

She jerked as her optics when dark, having withheld the scream that wanted to wrench itself out of her throat as she relived his memory as if it were her own. She shuddered when her optics came back online. She was reminded of an idle thought she had before. It seems that _she _was the parasite that had eaten away at Megatron's mind, not the other way around.

Burying that though away for another time, her eyes dragged across the 'Cons who were among the room. Some were barely containing their excitement while others were impatient, none sparing her any attention. She was fine with that, it had given her time to shift through Megatron's recent memory files over the past week. Soundwave, Starscream, and she had been planning the best way to reach, obtain, and harvest the energon. Speed was an issue, many Decepticons worried that the Autobots could find the signature. She found that highly unlikely, considering they themselves had scoured the planet and had not detected it. But who was she to argue with a paranoid, restless, and armed group of Decepticons? Others voted for the idea to take more mechs, not bothering to care about speed as long as they got as much energon they could. The countering argument was that if the Autobots did know already then they would have more mechs at their disposal. She snorted at that thought too. She was pretty sure the Autobots had no idea about energon on this planet.

While sorting through Megatron's memories had given her many answers on the condition of the plot, there were still a few key points she was missing. The only place she could get those was from the Autobots themselves. The Autobots who she had still neglected to call in the past ten days. She was glad she had actually gotten information from being at the 'Con base, though most of it she could have gotten from Megatron's memories other tidbits of information wouldn't have been.

There were definitely more 'Cons than the movie had stated. The Autobots would be horribly outnumbered if they charged them with a full assault. She cringed internally, knowing it was her fault that Megatron had gotten so paranoid, thus increasing the shit out of his army's number of soldiers. Most of which she didn't even recognize until she had gained their designations from Soundwave's stats that he had sent Megatron with ever new arrival.

There were a total of twenty-one Decepticons on the base. Only three known Decepticons were elsewhere on the planet. There were also a few that guarded the African base and speculation of other 'Cons scattered across the globe that had yet to make themselves known. But here was Soundwave and his cassettes which consisted of Ravage, Laserbeak, Buzzsaw and Rumble. Frenzy was with Barricade somewhere in North America, apparently looking for the Autobot base of operations. From what she heard of their updates, they weren't even close. Then Starscream and his trine: Thundercracker and Skywarp. There were two other seekers that had arrived during Megatron's paranoia. One was the clumsy seeker known as Misfire, the other one being the only femme seeker, Slipstream. The list included Shockwave, who had Driller stationed underground in Africa somewhere out of sight. Hook and the other Constructicons; Bonecrusher, Scavenger, Mixmaster, and Longhaul were also there. The mechs had been distraught over Scrapper's death. Scalpel was around, still chittering away in his creepy little German accent. Crankcase, Crowbar, and Hatchet made up the Dreads. And then there was Igor- the adorable, or at least in her opinion, little mech-head-thing. It had seemed like there were more to her in the beginning, but that mostly had to do with the fact that she never actually counted.

Soundwave was quiet most of the time unless he was sharing useful information, planning their up and coming harvest of the energon, or talking to his cassettes. Everything he said was well-thought out and logical. He was careful with his words. He didn't speak much but when he did she knew it was important to listen. His cassettes had their own personalities, sometimes clashing but mostly in good fun. She had seen the two mechanical birds, Laserbeak and Buzzsaw; antagonize Ravage a few times in the past few days. Though, Ravage always gave it back as good as he got it. It was more playful banter among siblings than anything else. There was also this sense of carefulness around Ravage, all of them seeming to remember when he was taken away from their little family. Rumble was quieter than Megatron's files said he would be. She figured he missed Frenzy. The other three cassettes tried to pull him into their banter but he was inconsolable. She doubted he would feel better until Frenzy was with them again.

Starscream would still get tense when she would get near him. It was mostly because when Megatron would feel her presence he would get more violent, the Air Commander being the unfortunate outlet. But slowly Starscream settled back into his snarky self. He knew how to tread the line between insubordination and loyalty very well. He seemed wary, but not outwardly so. Megatron had gotten so paranoid he had beaten the seeker within an inch of his life. She learned that's why Skywarp hadn't had enough energon as everyone else, having given most of his portion to his brother. Skywarp was the youngest of the three, and the most excitable. He was a little absent minded sometimes but he always had his spark in the right place. She was actually surprised he was a Decepticon. When she had wondered why he was there in the first place she had gotten a memory file of Starscream joining the Decepticon cause, his brothers following shortly after into their ranks though not looking happy about it. She figured that must still be an open wound for Thundercracker. He was the eldest and the most rational. He was more protective over Skywarp though, Starscream wouldn't let him be protective even if he tried. Thundercracker was also slow to anger, but when he did reach that point he stayed that way for a while before cooling down.

Misfire was clumsy and seemed to have a streak of bad luck. He also followed Starscream like the plague. Misfire had the hero worship akin to a fangirl for Starscream, wanting to be just like 'the Greatest Air Commander ever.' It amused her to no end to see Misfire practically become the Second in Command's shadow.

Slipstream usually didn't interact with the others of lower rank, keeping to herself, the other seekers, and high in rank such as Soundwave and 'Megatron'. Most of her comments were snarky or laced with sarcasm that she could shoot out at any second with her sharp wit. She walked more fluidly than anyone else and held an air of superiority. The girl gone Decepticon didn't know if Slipstream thought that because she was a seeker or because she was the only 'Con femme. The femme also looked at her in suspicion every once and a while. Not as much as Starscream, but still enough to make her cautious.

Shockwave was silent most of the time appearing cold and emotionless unless the youngling was mentioned. She saw the spark of irritation in his body language when she had brushed off the matter, claiming that there was no youngling at the site and never breaching the subject again. He had been appeased when she had given him more materials for the space bridge. She knew she would need it later.

Everyone else she really didn't get to speak with, most of them staying within their groups –or in Igor's case, following her around like a lost puppy. The Constructicons mostly worked on the base, making modifications or repairs where they were needed. The Dreads were usually found mulling around the base or in the sparing room. Igor, the only one that was near her enough that there was a possibility of a conversation, was a cheerful mech with a twisted sense of humor. Though, most of he said was gibberish.

A shrill screech brought her out of her thoughts. She looked up from the throne –which was surprisingly comfortable for being made out of some really hard metal- and felt a grin stretch across her faceplates.

"Just leave me alone, you little glitch!" Starscream howled, glowering at the smaller seeker known as Misfire. Seems the Air Commander finally got tired of his stalker. He had been giving subtle and not so subtle hints that he wanted Misfire as _far_ away as possible. Misfire had taken to randomly rambling on and filling Starscream in about events the Second in Command had missed in their time apart. They had been separated for a _long_ time.

"But I haven't even shown you my new missiles, yet!" Misfire cried out, engaging his weapons and pointing them at the seeker to show him. Starscream's optics widened in something akin to panic, everyone knew that they didn't want to be near Misfire when she shot a weapon. Even though the 'Con wasn't planning on firing them, you could never been too careful around him and his bad luck.

"Don't _point them_ at me, you fragger!" He screamed back, smacking his servo against the offending arm so it was aiming in a different direction. The action surprised the younger seeker so much that one of his missile fired.

It zoomed right past her, an inch from where she was sitting and a small explosion went off from the wall behind her. Everyone in the room froze, seemingly waiting for her reaction. If Starscream and Misfire could, they probably would have paled. She turned her head slowly from where she had it propped up on her clawed hand to look at the wall behind her. The damage wasn't that bad, mostly because no one in their right mind would have trusted Misfire with more powerful artillery. Probably would have hurt like a bitch if it actually hit her. She clucked her tongue, gaze lazily dragging back to the two unmoving seekers. In a state of shock of her own, where she didn't know whether to laugh or cry she spoke.

"You missed." She informed them dryly.

(Line Break)

She was worried.

She hadn't shown it earlier, actually she had mostly blocked it out but as they flew over Canada, already having made their way over the United States without detection, she had to at least admit it to herself. She was afraid that once they reached the Arctic Circle she would have another one of Megatron's PTSD flashbacks. Hell, his body had freaked out over _looking_ at snow. How was it going to handle standing in the same area where he had been frozen, let alone walking on it?

She looked at the other flying Decepticons around her. The plan was for the seekers and her to go and find the energon, seeing as they could get there quickly and avoid detection easier. Most had the equipment they would need in their subspace pockets. Starscream, being the scientist, had most of the items that would harvest the energon. Thundercracker, Skywarp, and Slipstream were there in case they encountered Autobots. Misfire was allowed to come because the more Decepticons they brought, the more energon they could bring back. The girl gone Decepticon only risked going because she didn't want to leave them unprepared, being the only one who had any idea what ice and snow was like. There was also the fact that she couldn't trust Starscream not to do something. She may know that he wasn't treated fairly and liked him as a character, but she knew better. Starscream usually took chances when he was out of Megatron's sight and influence. She refused to let anything impede on the Cybertronians' survival.

That also included not letting the seekers end up in untimely, frozen graves.

_:: Approaching the Arctic Circle. ETA in approximately two kliks. :: _Thundercracker announced. With trepidation she finally took her vision away from the sky to the ground. She waited for the rush of panic, the flashbacks, the feeling of dying and never being found again. Yet, nothing happened. She stared dumbly down at the ground. Was it only a one-time thing? Or had her preparation for what she thought was inevitable keep it from happening? Either way, she was grateful. She sent out the direct coordinates in Megatron's memory banks, all of their alt modes whipping past the frozen landscape. She was the first to land, transforming and bracing herself on her peds, surprising herself when she did so without falling or slipping. She couldn't help the smirk that twisted on her faceplates over the small victory. Thundercracker, Skywarp and Slipstream landed next. The two brothers steading each other, the younger's optics widened in contrast to Thundercracker's narrowing ones. Slipstream slid an inch and sneered, obviously not impressed with the new terrain. Starscream transformed, Misfire not a second behind him. The Air Commander obviously underestimated the slippery-ness of ice and slipped, one leg bucking. His servo shot out and gripped Misfire's should to stabilize himself. Misfire, caught off guard, crumpled forward under Starscream's added weight.

"_Frag!"_ The Second in Command screeched as Misfire let out a yelp. Starscream landed hard on his aft, Misfire being dragged down into a heap onto of the irate seeker. Her inner fangirl squealed, long and loudly at the sight of Starscream clutching Misfire's shoulder, the smaller mech sprawled between the Air Commander's spread legs. Thankfully this squeal was only in her mind. Still, she couldn't help it. She broke out into laughter. She positively _roared_.Starscream sent her a disgruntled expression as he shoved a fretting Misfire, who was stuttering out apologies, off of him. They both clambered back onto their peds.

"What a _graceful_ landing." Slipstream drawled, a smirk curling her faceplates.

"Slag off, _femme_." The Air Commander sneered, pulling out an energon scanner from his subspace. When her snickering died down she looked around. Where they were standing now was relatively clear, but she could see a large mound of ice and snow about a mile away. Something by the mound on the surface of the ice caught her attention, straining and narrowing her eyes to see it better. She jerked when her optics zoomed in, throwing off her whole depth perception. It focused quickly enough. She had seen what was built on the ice. A small shelter, most likely made by the people that had dragged Megatron out of his frozen prison, sat innocently and bluntly by the –what could be considered a mountain of- elevated ice. She started walking towards it carefully, planting her feet down firmly before taking the next step. She looked over her shoulder at the same moment the seekers looked up. She waved an arm, urging them to follow. They did so, only slight hesitation in their steps when they felt themselves slide as they walked. The dull beeping from the energon reader increased in tempo the closer they got to the building.

That's when she saw the crater in the ice.

She stilled completely. She felt someone run into her side, not expecting her sharp stop. Her clawed servo reacted instantly, gripping the arm of the 'Con. She couldn't take her eyes off of the hole, her whole frame shivering. A distant sound of protest reached her audio receptors; too far away make out what they were saying. _Ice, falling, drowning, forgotten, lost, lost, lost, lost, lostlostlostlost. Losing everything._

"Lord Megatron!" A feminine voice barked in her face. She flinched, practically crushing -who she now noticed was Starscream's- arm. Loosening her hold, she blinked, her optics going dim before they on lined again and was met with Slipstream's tense facial platting. Her internal fans and gears that had stuttered to a stop when she saw Megatron's frozen prison whirled back to life. The other seekers were looking at her wearing a range of expressions. She ignored the cautious, suspicious, calculating, and confused looks to glance at the crater once again. Memories were hurtled at her mind but she firmly pushed them away, her hand clenching briefly before she remove it from Starscream. The Air Commander snapped his arm away from her as if he thought she would change her mind.

"Let's just get this over with." She muttered, taking the energon reader from Starscream's servos and striding forward. She quelled the panic as she got closer to the _Pit_, she almost snorted in amusement at the extremely accurate metaphor. As she reached its edge, still a safe distance in case the ice decided to crumble under her peds. By this point the detector was blaring continuously, a never ending loop of annoying, fast pasted beeping. If she was still human she was pretty sure it would have matched her heartbeat. She looked at Starscream, holding out a hand.

"Digging equipment?" She half questioned and half ordered as she looked down to the bottom of the ice covered pit. It seemed whoever had dug Megatron up hadn't gone deep enough to reach the energon. Starscream, looking incredulous that she even _hinted_ about doing the dirty work reluctantly handed her a shovel looking thing. She tilted her head at it, handing the energon detector to a surprised Skywarp as he tried not to drop it. It wasn't exactly like a shovel. It glowed faintly, the material reminding her of Optimus's energon sword. There was no handle on the end of it, just a large, curved metal. Starscream pulled out two more, throwing one to Thundercracker. When he looked like he was about to give the shovel to Misfire she gave him a disbelieving look.

"You really want Misfire down in there with us?" Starscream's face fell, quickly snatching the energon reader from Skywarp and shoving the third shovel to his younger brother. Skywarp let out a sigh while she rolled her eyes. She inched her way closer to the edge, hoping to slide down slowly. She quickly assessed the size of the pit. She deemed it was about "55 feet deep, twenty feet higher than Megatron. She snarled quietly to herself when she slid down the side of the pit faster than she had anticipated. When the ice didn't break under her weight she looked around, realize the space wasn't as cramped as she would have thought. There was room for at least three mechs. At first when Starscream had pulled out three shovels she had been skeptical. The only question left was if the ice would support them all.

"Come on down, Thundercracker." She ordered. If they were going to fall, she didn't want Skywarp down here. It was obvious the eldest of the trine shared her sentiment when he clambered down without protest. Everyone was silent, waiting for the possible cracking sound of the ice. When nothing happened Skywarp and Misfire let out audible sounds of relief. She looked up at Skywarp dubiously, weighing the pros and cons of testing to see if another mech could be added. If he was down here they could reach the energon faster but if his added weigh caused the ice to break… She saw the youngest seeker get ready to slide down.

"Skywarp, stay up there." She barked out the order, making the youngest jump, moving away from the edge. Thundercracker's tense form loosened slightly. Skywarp looked relieved, but also conflicted. He wanted to help, yet he didn't want to run the risk of sending his brother and leader crashing through the ice.

"Starscream, toss me the energon detector." The Second in Command moved towards the edge warily, loosening his hold on the piece of equipment grudgingly so it could land into her clawed servo. She moved slowly, pointing the reader all around the pit to see which direction they had to dig in. She frowned when it remained the same around the whole circle. A frown quirked her faceplates as she lowered her arm in confusion. Suddenly, the beeping increased tenfold. She brought her arm up in surprise and looked down. Great, they would have to dig straight into the pit.

"This is going to take forever." She muttered, obviously loud enough for the others keen hearing to pick up as Misfire responded from the top. Far enough away that she couldn't see him.

"Why not just come back up and fire downwards then?" His curious voice flittered down to the hole. There was a sound of a metal hitting metal.

"_Idiot!_" Starscream screeched, "You can't just _shoot at_ energon. Who knows how _raw _and _unstable _it could be? You could _blow up half the planet if you're not careful!"_ She felt a dark shiver of fear creep down her spine. She glanced at Thundercracker, who had an uncomfortable expression marring his features. She threw up the energon reader, hearing a metallic _clang _from where the Air Commander's voice had come from. She heard a muffled, high pitched curse.

"And if the _raw _and _unstable _energon was hit with a shovel?" She specified. There was a silence for a second before the seeker's head peaked over the edge.

"That equipment was _made_ to deal with energon, _my Lord_." He explained, barely keeping a sneer off of his features. "Nothing unsightly will happen to you, _your elegance._" She bit her tongue from making a snarky response back, her glossa firmly held between her dentes. Instead of responding verbally, she smoothly took the long shovel in her hand and arched it upward. It just barely missed Starscream, who shuffled back quickly.

"Do _not _aggravate me enough to have to come back up there." She finally warned. Just for added measure, and to irritate the Air Commander she called, "Skywarp's in charge of everyone topside." There were twin sputters if indignation from Slipstream and Starscream but she promptly started digging, ignoring the upset seekers. Thundercracker smirked before aiding her.

"My Lord, what have I done to spite you? It was _Starscream_ that insulted you."

"The _femme _has no idea what's she's talking about, Master. I only wished to show my utter _devotion_ to you with my words. It is not _my_ fault she has twisted it into something _unsavory._"

This went on for twenty minutes. She didn't respond, not sure whether to be amused at the banter or annoyed at their constant nagging. It's not like Skywarp had any real leadership when she was only a few meters away. It seemed just the thought of the lower ranked seeker being above them for even a half hour was unspeakable. She rolled her optics, slamming the shovel down with more force than she intended.

_Crack._


	6. Chapter 6

**Sorry for taking so long to update. I kind of got stuck. Thank you for all your wonderful reveiws. They really make my day and help me continue writing. Enjoy.**

**Disclaimer: I do not own Transformers... or Batman.**

She _hated_ ice.

Sand, ice, bullshitting Autobots, bitchy seekers, and Megatron's _stupid_ PTSD; she hated them all. Maybe this was her personal hell. Maybe that's why she didn't remember how she even got here. Maybe she died so damn fast there wasn't even any time to register it. Or better yet, she might be in a coma somewhere, imaging all of this in the insanity in the dark corners of her mind while the doctors messed with her brain to make her wake up.

Damn, that would _suck_.

These thoughts briefly flickered across her mind before she and Thundercracker plunged through the layer of ice that served as the floor of the pit. A scream ripped its way out of her throat before her raging emotions choked out the cry. _Falling, dying, never to be seen again. Forgotten._ She distantly heard Skywarp call out his eldest brother's name in panic before darkness engulfed the both of them. It wasn't the kind of darkness that she experienced when passing out, and all ping boxes indicated she was alive for the moment. She had to assume that they were falling. Her optics adjusted quickly to the low light at the same moment she hit something, hearing another metal body smacking into the same curved ice she had. She slid quickly, already having built up momentum. It was like a waterslide, like the ones at the waterparks she had visited for vacations or fieldtrips. Like all slides, they had a rush of water at the end. Unfortunately, being an _ice _slide her form crashed through a wall of snow and solid water. She flailed forward, landing on her stomach and forearms at the bottom. She didn't even have the time to think of moving before Thundercracker slammed into her, landing in a heap on top of her. She let a whoosh of air, not needing but still feeling like she had to catch her non-existent breath.

She groaned in pain, shifting and indicating that Thundercracker should _move his heavy aft_. The seeker caught on quickly, shoving himself off of her larger form, emitting his apologizes. She waved him off as she hauled herself up, shivering as she shook the excess snow off like a dog.

"Contact the others." She muttered, wanting to get a better look at their surroundings without Starscream's shrieking in her ear. Then before he could comply, her focusing optics looked at him sharply.

"Are you alright?" She inquired, looking him over for any visible injuries. Thundercracker gave a firm nod before patching a call. Her eyes scanned the area quickly, optics widening.

The cavern was completely filled with energon.

The faint pink glow brightened up the icy cave, energon crystals breaking through the frozen water from all angles, all surfaces. It seemed like it had been _growing _and_ thriving_ here. If they had a natural source of energon, one that can be recreated and reproduce it then they would never run out. There was _more _than enough for her to bring the Autobots here. As long as they made sure there was always a constant amount of energon in the cavern then it would be an unlimited supply. She doubted that, even some of the greedier Decepticons, wouldn't want to preserve this. Plus, anyone did try to take more than allowed they would have all of the Cybertronians on their tails.

"Skywarp says everyone above ground is fine, they are sending down Starscream and the harvesting equipment, Lord Megatron." She nodded in acknowledgement. She snorted when she realized he contacted his younger brother instead of Starscream was because she put his Skywarp in charge. Starscream and Slipstream were going to be _pissed_. A few minutes later she heard the high pitched- although creative- curses as Starscream slid into the cavern. He lifted himself up, looking disgruntled and very put upon until his optics fell on the energon. His optics glowed with eagerness and _relief_. The Air Commander moved forward quickly as he pulled energon harvesting equipment from his subspace. Calling out to his brother to assist him, neither of them noticed her take a crystal and putting it her subspace.

(Line Break)

They had been in that hole _far_ longer than she appreciated.

It had taken a little over two hours, if her inter-clock was correct. She knew this was a big milestone for them, probably a great moment in history but she really couldn't get over the fact of how _boring_ it was. All she had done was watching Starscream do his science-y-ness-stuff and Ta-Da, they had energon cubes. He had pretty much melted the crystals and poured them into empty containers. The only profound thought besides, _'This is boring as hell.'_,_ 'Why can't he hurry his aft up?'_, and_ 'I wonder what Starscream would do for a Klondike bar.' _was that she was _cold, dammit!_

Thankfully, Megatron's body found no need to freak out on her this time. She would have accused his body of being bi-polar if she didn't think it the comment would come back to bite her in the ass. While these thoughts had drifted over her mind the others had been told to meet them in the cavern. After filling everyone's subspace pockets to Starscream's liking, they had finally gotten out of that frozen hell-hole.

Now, as they landed at the Nemesis she felt an overwhelming sense of exhaustion flow over her. But considering the fact that she and the others still had to drop of the energon, reassure the troops of their success and dissuade the possible thought of _anyone_ taking or disrupting the natural resource, she wouldn't be getting sleep anytime soon.

She strode out of the room quickly, already having changed to her bi-pedal form. The sooner she started the sooner she could get some sleep. The seekers followed her, all showing their excitement in various ways. Starscream had caught up with her, staking his claim as Second in Command by walking on her right side. From what she saw when she looked over her shoulder, Slipstream was carrying a smirk on her features while Thundercracker's claws twitched in anticipation. She could hear Skywarp's excited, somewhat bouncy footfalls along with Misfire's chatter. She saw Starscream scowl out of the corner of her optics as Misfire continued to prattle on about how lucky they were to have a natural source of fuel. She could only think one thing in response.

'_Jinx.'_

As they reached the rec room everyone inside was silent, waiting for the news on the supposed energon source. The seekers and she calmly walked into the room. But, being as tired as she was, she didn't feel like talking. So, quickly, carefully, and efficiently, she emptied the part of her subspace pocket that held the cubes. She did so without stopping, deeming them someone else's problem now and sprawled herself across the stairs in front of Megatron's throne. She really didn't give a fuck if anyone thought it was odd that she was lying on the floor. Apparently, the large amount of energon was more interesting than their Lord's behavior if the uproarious cheers and chatter had anything to do with it.

"Soundwave," She called, "Make sure everyone gets a drink and take care of the energon, would you?" The Communications Officer nodded in compliance. If anything, the cheers got louder. The seekers followed Soundwave, who had fluidly picked up the energon she had left lying in the middle of the room. All of them came back a few moments later, mechs from other parts of the base already having made the trip to the rec room once they were informed. Skywarp and Soundwave were carrying cubes for everyone. She raised an optic ridge at the different shaded cubes. These must have been from the dwindling supply. She heard murmurs about high-grade and snorted. It looks like she would be the tired host of a Decepticon party.

(Line Break)

The party was in full swing at this point. She had moved from her spot on the floor to the throne, her helm propped up on her servo as she watched with interest.

It seems the Cybertronians had a music equivalent. Though, it was nothing like she had ever heard before. It was something like dubstep, only with the alien quality she was sure humans wouldn't be able to reproduce. It was something she wasn't sure if she liked or not. It was unique, undoubtedly.

There were a few Decepticons that danced in the middle of the rec room. Among them she saw Skywarp gliding fluidly as if he were flying. Hatchet and most of Soundwave's Cassettes were running and flying around the room, excluding Rumble who seemed to be moping on the Third in Command's shoulder. Soundwave, who hadn't had much of the high-grade, was trying to comfort the little mech, an odd sight to see as his concerned words mixed with his stoic demeanor. She saw Igor at the bottom of the stairs to Megatron's throne, gulping down his third cube of high-grade with a pleased grin. Other Decepticons, Hook among them, were standing or sitting by tables that had been set up.

Starscream, who was standing off to the side, was scowling and pushing the happy and drunken Misfire _away from him_ as he tried to keep his drink from spilling. His elder brother stood next to him, Thundercracker's faceplates twisting in amusement. The two other Dreads, Crankcase and Crowbar, were obviously trying to impress the only femme by wrestling each other on the ground in front of her seat. Slipstream rolled her eyes, stood up, raised her head haughtily and walked away, leaving two drunken Decepticons disappointed and confused. The girl in Megatron's body shook slightly with silent laughter.

Then everything was shot to hell when she, Soundwave, and Starscream received a message.

**Barricade.**

**Decepticon Scout.**

**Requesting communications with Lord Megatron the Leader of the Decepticons.**

**Requesting added communications with Starscream: Air Commander and Second in Command of the Decepticon Army and Soundwave: Communications Officer and Third in Command of the Decepticon Army.**

**Status: Important.**

She accepted with trepidation, relieved that it wasn't a message from the Autobots yet still wary of whatever the scout deemed important.

_:: What is it? :: _She inquired as the sides of her metallic mouth quirking into a frown. She glanced at the other two who were allowed in on the conversation. Thundercracker had the presence of mind to stop Misfire from bothering Starscream when the barely audible static burst was heard. The Air Commander glanced up at her, optics darting form her place on Megatron's throne to Soundwave. She dragged her gaze to look at the Communication's Officer. He was being more subtle than Starscream. He gave a small nod in acknowledgment when she caught his eye. Soundwave murmured something to Rumble. The Cassette's face lit up with surprise, happiness, and worry. Everyone else was oblivious.

_:: Frenzy and I have come across a situation. We deemed it would be best to seek advisement before we proceed. ::_ Why did Barricade's words send a shiver of dread down her spine?

_:: Suggestion: explain. ::_ Soundwave's voice, still monotonous, seemed somewhat clipped. She assumed that Frenzy's presence in the matter was his cause for his impatience.

_:: On our search for any possible Autobot base of operations we came into contact with a human. ::_

_:: So kill the squishy and go back to looking_. _:: _Starscream snapped, obviously annoyed at what he saw as simple logic.

_:: The human may possibly have information on the Autobots. He was at the battle in Egypt. ::_ She felt panic race through her thoughts. Who could Barricade have come into contact with? Leo? Will? Epps? It couldn't be Sam and any female that was in the movies had been excluded.

_:: So get the information and get rid of it. ::_ She could see Starscream's sneer from the other side of the room.

_::_ _No! ::_ She cut in quickly. She noticed Soundwave and Starscream look up at her rushed denial. _:: I need that human alive and unharmed. What is your location? ::_ She ordered and questioned in quick succession, already forming a vague plan in her head. She stood up quickly, catching the attention of some of the less drunken Cybertronians.

_:: You're not actually going to pick that squishy up _yourself_, are you, master? ::_ Starscream questioned in disgust. She rolled her optics before giving him a dull stare.

_:: Oh. :: _She emitted, suddenly sounding cheerful. _:: Are you volunteering, Starscream? ::_ When he cringed and gave a denial she continued. _:: Didn't think so. Soundwave, gather up some energon for Barricade. Barricade, send me your coordinates. ::_

(Line Break)

She was going to meet _Barricade_.

She wasn't sure whether to ecstatic or terrified.

Sure, it's not like he was going to attack her. Mostly because he would think she was Megatron but still, she was nervous. The Decepticon cop car was one of her _favorites. _She wondered what he was really like. Of course, she read many fanfics but -like many other characters- he could have easily been twisted to the writer's desire yet still seem cannon. Was he a ruthless 'Con or did he really hide an Autobot heart underneath it all?

If it wasn't for the fact that he had kidnapped a human she could have found herself chipper at the thought of possibly finding out. Unfortunately, that wasn't the case.

She transformed in the air and landed hard on her peds. She looked around, optics taking in the field. She was some rural area in the state of New York. She sighed in nostalgia. In her world she lived at town within this state, not far from the more country-like areas. If she didn't have to meet up with Barricade she might have taken a curious flight over where her house was supposed to stand.

A cop car rolled towards where she was waiting. The door popped open, Frenzy dragging out a man. If she was still human she wouldn't have been able to see his features in the dark. Yet this man, she knew all too well.

'_Simmons.'_ It seems Barricade must have found him near his home town of NYC and brought him further out into the state. Speaking of Barricade, she watched him as he transformed, holding back a grin. He lowered his head in greeting. There was a chittering noise from Frenzy before she heard the human curse. She tilted her head in his direction. Simmons was glaring at the smallest 'Con.

"Watch it!" He hissed as Frenzy's hands grip tightened. "I get it, you're mad about the flame-thrower thing. But, in my defense, you really brought it on yourself with those ninja stars of _death_." She pulled Barricade's share of the energon from her subspace. Frenzy let out a chirp of excitement when she put the cubes on the ground. She moved forward, mere feet from Barricade and glared into his optics. The shorter 'Con stiffened, but didn't back up.

"Next time you see a human that you think would be useful _contact me first_ before you _kidnap them_." She spoke lowly, far too quiet for the human to hear.

"Yes, Lord Megatron." She nodded firmly before moving over to Frenzy. She transformed back into her plane form and opened the hatch to her cockpit. Frenzy took the hint and started dragging Simmons into her alt form. She saw the man's eyes widen in panic but not recognition.

"You… you can't just trade me for some pink blocks!" Simmons yelled. Frenzy strapped him in to the seat. When Frenzy clambered back down she took off, making sure she didn't jostle the panicking human. After Barricade and Frenzy were out of scanning distance she calmed down her racing thoughts.

(Line Break)

"Optimus, you're going to want to take a look at this." The Prime looked up from his data pad. He was currently in the new main hanger at Diego Garcia. Most of them hadn't wanted to leave the base in California. Not only was the old base closer to Sam, but it was the only base the AWOL youngling knew of. The same youngling they hadn't been in contact with for ten earth days. The new base was also impractical, in the fact that the only way on or off the horse-shoe like island was by ship or plane. Galloway, however, was able to convince the president that the old base was no longer secure. The Director seemed to also _forget_ to mention the young one's offer.

"What is it, Jolt?" He stood up from where he left his work for the moment. He had taken a tendency to work amongst his comrades. Everything was, for the moment, stockpiled in the main hanger. Ratchet was the only one with a hanger of his own, stating that a medical bay was first priority.

Jolt didn't respond, sending the Prime a data burst without a word. The Prime opened it curiously before he felt his spark drop.

_:: Autobots, we have a situation. ::_ He said over the public 'Bot communication line. Most of the Autobot's were roused out of recharged. He sent the image to all of them.

_:: Barricade has been spotted kidnapping one of our human allies, Seymour Simmons. ::_ There was a scoff over the line.

_:: From what I've heard from Bee, he wasn't much of an ally _before. _:: _Sideswipe argued. Bumblebee- who was half way across the world and still guarding Sam- started to protest but Ironhide cut him off.

_:: You're passing up a chance to beat some Decepticon scum aft? :: _The weapons specialist questioned gruffly. Suddenly, another presence tore into their secure communication link, surprising all of them.

_:: You bastards! ::_

(Line Break)

Oh, she was livid.

Not only did she have to deal with Simmons sudden mood swings, shifting from panicked anger to eerily calm and back again. No, she also flew across the United States to the Autobot base in California, depleting more of her energon levels. Hook and Ratchet would be completely _pissed_ if they found out she hadn't had energon since that one nasty swig. Thankfully, Cybertronians could go a lot longer without food-drink-_whatever_. At the moment she was at 33%. But that wasn't the problem.

The Autobots had _left _and hadn't felt the need to _tell her_.

'_God damn them all to the Hell.'_ She flew _all the way over here_ just to find out _they weren't here_. She wanted to scream and to rant. Unfortunately, she had a passenger. One she doubted would climb back into her alt form- especially when he realized what body he had been in- after she was done with her temper-tantrum. She changed her course for the Indian Ocean, knowing the only other possible place they could be was Diego Garcia. Then, in her raged fogged mind, she did the only thing she could think of doing to calm herself.

She called to bitch.

'_Contact all Autobots.' _When she patched through, she didn't waste any time.

_:: You bastards! ::_ She shouted indignantly. _:: I go to figure out how to save your plot and you all _abandon _me? The fuck is wrong with you all? ::_ There was a shocked silence over the line before Prime questioned her warily.

_:: …Youngling? ::_

_:: Who the hell else did you expect? :: _She snarled. _:: I flew across the whole continent, Prime. A god-damn _continent! _::_

_:: Do you have any information on a Seymour Simmons? ::_ Wheeljack asked abruptly. She snorted.

_:: Information? Why would I need information when I have him bitching in my cockpit? ::_

_:: You have the human _with you?_ How? From what we gathered, Barricade and Frenzy had him. ::_ An Italian accent threw her off for a moment before she dubbed as Mirage.

_:: Considering I could order Starscream to lick Megatron's feet and get away with it, it doesn't surprise me that I could convince them into giving the human to me. :: _

_:: He's gotta point, yo. ::_

_:: Ain't nobody mess wit' the guy callin' da shots. ::_

_:: Exactly. ::_ She said dryly. _:: I'll be at your location in a couple hours. Try not to shoot me this time. :: Click_.

(Line Break)

Red Alert asked the questioned that was on ever 'Bots mind.

_:: …How does he know where to go? ::_

(Line Break)

She was completely exhausted by the time she got in seeing distance of Diego Garcia.

She hadn't slept since the night before yesterday. She went from getting energon to watching the party and then straight to saving Simmons' ass.

She had a really busy day, once she thought about it.

She let out a whoosh of air in relieve when she saw the horse-shoe like island, the sun rising over the horizon. She was tired of listening to Simmons complain and demand answers. She hadn't spoken to him once, figuring that if she spoke he would recognize Megatron's voice and become twice as panicked.

Read; twice as _fucking annoying_.

There were only two things that kept her from just saying to hell with it and chucking him out of her alt mode. 1) After the first movie, he ended up being an awesome character. The second reason was-

-she couldn't wait to see the look on his face when he realized he had been riding around in Megatron, aka, NBE-1.

Only after laughing her ass off from the appropriate amount of time would she find somewhere comfortable to pass out for the next few days. Autobots be damned. Plan in mind, she landed on a conveniently placed tarmac. It was eerily quiet and she heard Simmons' heart rate pick up. She popped the hatch with an inaudible hiss. The human's gripped her seat and she jerked, letting out a short and surprised giggle.

'_Since when is Megatron ticklish?'_ She started shaking the seat back and forth, jostling the human and hinting at him to get out.

"Alright, alright!" He shouted. "I'm going, alright?" He unbuckled himself and climbed out, stiffening when his feet were firmly planted on the ground. Only once Simmons was safely out of her alt form did the beings on the base make themselves known. She saw humans, donned in their guns and equipment, stride out the building towards Simmons. At the same moment, Ratchet and Optimus made their presence known. The ex-Sector Seven member looked completely baffled. Will and Epps walked up to the man, asking if he was alright. Before Simmons could answer, she transformed, keeping her gleeful eyes on him.

His reaction was priceless.

He gripped the front of his shirt, jerking his upper body back and colliding with Will. His mouth hung open, eyes wide as he sputtered. He looked back and forth between Will, Epps, the Autobots and her. She noticed the corners of Will's lips twitch while Epps smirked and she grinned.

"That's- what- how- _I was-_ shit- _that's NBE-1!" _He finally settled on, voice climbing to a higher pitch then she ever thought he could reach. Ratchet scanned the distressed human quickly. After making sure the man wasn't having a heart attack or a stroke he turned to her. His optics and scanners accessed her shoulder and wings. Then a third scanner roved over her and she saw his optics narrow.

"Medibay, _now_." Before she could respond the ex-Sector Seven agent found his voice.

"Hold on, _hold on. _Is anyone going to explain this?" Simmons cut in, gesturing wildly towards her person.

"That's classified." She quipped. Then she turned to look him in the eyes for the first time.

"You _can't-_" He started to protest.

"You see this?" She interjected, pointing at Megatron's Decepticon insignia. "This is a do-whatever-I-want-and-get-away-with-it badge." She quoted, enjoying his stunned surprise with more maliciousness then she assumed was normal.

"Youngling." Optimus warned, glancing at Ratchet's stiff form yet she could still hear faint traces of amusement.

"Can't you think of anything more dignified than calling me child all the time?" She deadpanned.

"Well, if you had given us your designation…" Ratchet prodded dryly.

"To the Batcave!" She shouted abruptly, grabbing Optimus' wrist and heading in the direction she guess was the way to Ratchet's dreaded medical bay. "Let's go, Alfred." She heard a couple soldiers snicker. Ratchet rolled his optics before following at a more sedated pace, an amused smirk quirking his mouth plating.

"That guy's got more than just a few screws loose." Simmons muttered. She jerked her head, stopping her run so quickly the Prime almost slammed into her. Her red eyes locked with Seymour's.

"That's strike two." She roared and paused to get the message across. Then she grinned and went back to walking, dragging the last Prime along with her. "Na na na na na na na na na na na na na na na na, Batman!"


	7. Chapter 7

"Drink it."

"No."

The tension in the air that followed her refusal could have been cut with a knife. Blue and red optics clashed, staring each other down and waiting for a flicker of uncertainty, of doubt, of _weakness_. Metaphorical sparks flew back and forth. She was slightly disappointed that there was no ominous clash of thunder in the background.

Optimus cleared his throat. Both of their optics pierced into him with ferociousness that would have sent lower Cybertronian running for his spark and sanity.

"Youngling," He said cautiously, eyes darting back from her form that was sitting on a medical berth to an enraged Ratchet. "You have to refuel."

"Optimus," She responded in kind, sarcasm dripping from her words, "You have to bite me." The Prime sighed, bringing a hand up to pinch the plating where his nose would be. An energon cube was thrust into her line of vision, a pair of optics burning into hers again.

"Drink it." Her face plating scrunched up in distaste.

"Make me!" She barked.

Then promptly regretted it when the medic's optics gleamed, rivaling even the most ruthless of Decepticons.

'_Crap.'_ She was able to jerk out of the way when he moved to pin her down. She crab crawled up the medical berth, eyes wide when he latched onto her ankle. She kicked out instinctively scrambling to the side. She squawked when she fell off the berth and slammed into the ground. She heard Optimus let out a loud sigh from the other side of the room.

Ratchet was sprawled across the berth, optics locking onto her. She skittered to her feet quickly, yet not quickly enough when the older 'Bot launched himself of the bed and body checked her back onto the floor. She turned over in panic, elbowing the more experienced fighter who still clutched onto the closed cube of energon. His other servo was running over the metal at the back of her neck, obviously searching for something. She flailed, knowing she didn't want him to find whatever he was looking for.

"Optimus," They both called out in unison, "Help me!" The Prime just stared, obviously not sure whether to be amused or concerned. With a sigh and knowing both of them would never let him hear the end of it if he didn't help, he walked toward the mass of metal and limbs as they each tried to get the upper hand. When he was in reaching distance he paused again, assessing where would be the best way to stop them both.

Suddenly, a piercing scream was emitted from the girl in Megatron's body. Ratchet froze, scanners already roving over her body as his processor searched frantically for anything he could have possibly done that could cause such a reaction. Before he could find anything he was struck dumb when the screaming youngling stopped short and grinned. Her hand snapped out, grabbing Optimus' arm and yanking him down, her other arm flailing out, knocking his legs out from under him. As Optimus fell and Ratchet's processor finally realized he had been tricked, she slid out from under the stunned medic. The loud metallic clang of their two bodies slamming into the floor still didn't drown out the sound of the door opening and closing behind her.

"How does he keep _doing that?_" Ratchet huffed as the Prime got up, reaching a sheepish hand to help the shorter 'Bot up with an apologetic look on his faceplates. The Prime didn't respond, opening the communication link to inform the other Autobots about the youngling most likely running around- and hopefully not _away_ _from_- the base. That is, he would have, if there already wasn't a continuous message being sent over the open link.

_:: -Ratchet the Rapist. Ratchet the Rapist. Ratchet the Rapist- ::_

Optimus could tell today was going to be a long day.

(Line Break)

She didn't _plan_ on ending up in Megatron's body. She didn't _plan_ on getting shot by Prowl. She didn't _plan_ on running from the base in California. She didn't _plan_ on liking the Decepticons. She didn't _plan_ on having to rescue Simmons. She didn't _plan _on fleeing from Ratchet and Optimus over a simple matter such as not wanting to drink something she deemed nasty.

And she definitely didn't _plan_ on smacking into Arcee as she ran around the base a few minutes later.

The continuous message that she had sent out just to spite the medic cut off abruptly. She finally let the outside work sink into her vision. She was still inside one of the hangers, the base being a collection of large metal buildings. She reached a hand down on autopilot to the still femme who stared at her.

"Sorry, I wasn't watching where I was going." She explained quickly, an uncomfortable and apologetic grimace on her features. The pink 'Bot took her outstretched servo, pulling herself up as her optics contemplated her with an unknown emotion.

"…How old are you?" Arcee finally spoke, soft voice sounding weighed down by sadness. Her other servo came up to cup her clawed hand, silently pleading with the human to tell her. The girl started, staring back and weighing her options. She looked around quickly before pulling Arcee into a nearby room, one that looked mostly empty and unused. She noticed- what looked like- a few boxcars and brought Arcee over to sit down with her. She looked at the pink 'Bot seriously, deciding.

"An eye for an eye, I'll answer a question for a question. If I answer you, will you answer me?" Arcee nodded as she sat down, wrapping her arms around her abdomen.

"Sixteen." She blurted and saw Arcee's faceplates fall. The girl raised an optic ridge.

"No child should have to deal with war." She responded, sounding upset. "Not only is this not your planet's war, it is not even your dimension's. You're just a _child_ yet you've been among the Decepticons, chased off of the Autobot base, shot, injured critically, _almost offlined-_" She cut off with what sounded like a sob. The girl jerked in surprise. She had never even spoken to Arcee but the femme still cared so much about her life. She felt her spark twinge in sympathy. She scooted over to the shaking Bot's boxcar and put an arm around her carefully, giving her a half hug.

"It's alright." She murmured, hoping that she sounding comforting even with Megatron's voice. "I'm going to make your plot better and then Wheeljack can figure out a way to send me home. Everything will work out." They sat there for a few minutes, vents quietly whirling in the silence.

She looked down to see blue optics focused on her, the shaking having subsided. The pink Bot straighten in her seat and the girl moved her arm from around Arcee.

"Now," the femme continued, "I believe I owe you a question." The girl nodded, wondering how to phrase her delicate question.

"In Egypt…" She started, gauging the pink Bot's reaction and noting how she stiffened slightly before relaxing her joints. "In the movie they showed shots fired… but they never went into further detail, such as what was lethal and what wasn't. Later, I read that the director or someone stated that all three of you died in the fight, yet some of the comics continued keep you three alive. So, I guess what I'm asking is, how are you alive?" She noticed Arcee hesitate, her servos shaking slightly. She felt her own optics dim in response. "I wouldn't ask if it wasn't important to the plot and to every Cybertronian. Anything you can tell me would be helpful." She murmured softly. The female scout nodded firmly, hardening her resolve.

"They're still connected to me." She uttered softly, "Ratchet didn't think I would make it, they were able to get my spark casing just in time. But it wasn't enough. My spark needed energon, it needed a body. Yet Ratchet didn't have enough spare metal. Others told me afterwards that Ratchet was like a hollow shell, blaming himself as he watched my spark slowly burn itself out." The girl felt a dark chill run down her spine as Arcee shuddered.

"But he found metal?" She prodded gently.

"Yes. But that's the ironic part." She suddenly lifted part of her armor to show the underplating. The human looked forward hesitantly, yet still curious. She tilted her head and furrowed her brow as she noticed the familiar color of metal.

"That's Decepticon metal, isn't it?" She inquired in surprise. Arcee nodded, bringing the painted over armor back to its original place.

"More Decepticons have been arriving on the planet since Egypt. We wouldn't know if it was an allied Cybertronian until they landed. Most brought supplies, Cybertronian alloy included." The pink Bot suddenly let out a small laugh. "Megatron brought more Decepticons to the planet to fight against the Autobots, but by calling them here they may have saved my life." The human started to speak, but thought better of it, deciding to ask another question instead.

"You said you and your sisters are connected. Can you tell me how, exactly?" She made sure to keep her tone light, not wanting to make another Bot suspicious of her. Arcee got a faraway look in optics as she responded.

"I can still feel them. Their sparks are not in other bodies," The scout brought a servo up to her chest, "their life forces are a part of mine."

"How?" She wondered, vaguely remembering reading something similar. Arcee shook her head.

"Decepticon experimentation. There is no reason to explain any further than that." Her clipped tone refused any further prodding on that part of the subject.

"But what does being connect that way mean for you and for them?"

"Once we have more metal and Optimus uses the Matrix," She whispered wistfully, "we can bring them back." The girl blinked in surprise.

"That's cannon?" She questioned incredulously.

"Cannon?" Arcee repeated, cocking her head to the side in a sign of confusion. The human waved her off before bringing her clawed hands gently to clasp the scout's.

"I'm glad you can see them again. You have no idea how much you've helped me figure out missing pieces of your plot." She looked at her with complete sincerity, "Thank you." Arcee looked surprised before her blue, softening optics bore into red. When the stare lasted for a few moments the girl let go of the pink Bot's servos.

"What?" She muttered self-consciously. Arcee seemed to debate her words before finally speaking.

"I never thought I would see Megatron's features show anything but anger, hatred, or twisted glee over another's suffering." Arcee admitted, "The fact that you can look compassionate and caring even with his face gives me hope."

The human opened her mouth to respond but her throat closed up when the sound of loud thumping reached her audio receptors. She jerked her head up as the door to the room they were in opened with an ominous hiss.

"There you are!" Wheeljack's Irish lilted voice called from the open door. He leaned back somewhat to look back outside, "Red Alert, I found 'em." The Bot then walked completely in the room, an easy grin slid onto his feature. He nodded to Arcee, questions behind his optics but none he said aloud as he dropped down on a boxcar. Red Alert walked in a few paces behind him, glancing from her to Wheeljack before his optics landed on Arcee.

"Why didn't you contact us on his location?" He cried out, "He's not only dangerous, but this search party put me behind schedule in updating our security."

"There's also the fact that Ratchet is throwing a right hissy fit over ya'." The Autobot technician nodded to the human. She gave him a sheepish grin and he laughed.

"Any chance we could tie up Red Alert and pretend you never found me?" The aforementioned Bot protested in indignation. She tuned him out until one key sentence got past her selective hearing.

"-Besides, I already contacted Optimus Prime and the others-"

"You did _what_?" She shouted, rushing to the door-

-and promptly catching sight of Optimus striding and Ironhide lumbering down the hallway.

"Red Alert, you suck."

(Line Break)

She was dragged kicking and screaming back to the medibay.

"-Optimus, you traitorous son of a bitch! You saw what he did! _You were there, dammit! _He's going to _murder me_, Prime. It's not going to be the Decepticons, it's not going to be your trigger happy cop car, and it's not going to be Megatron's _stupid PTSD, _no.It's going to be Ratchet and his deathly bedside manner. How do you know he didn't poison the energon? _That's right, you don't know._" When it became clear that the Prime wasn't going to listen to her theories she resorted to threatening.

"_Orion Pax._" She barked and felt him jerk in surprise, "You and Ironhide put me down _right now _or I'll find every embarrassing memory of you that Megatron has and broadcast it for _everyone _to see." Ironhide snorted, shifting his hold on her kicking legs. When she realized that Optimus wasn't going to give in she turned her sights to Ironhide.

"You know what you're doing right? You're giving the fat kid a chocolate bar. Everyone knows you _don't give the fat kid candy. _It'll be gone sooner than you can blink. _You won't even remember it was there_. You won't get time to talk to the candy bar, you won't get time to become friends with the candy bar, and if you don't save the candy bar then the candy bar is going to tell everyone about the _Tooth Fairy_."

"Hello, Ratchet." Ironhide addressed somewhere over Optimus' shoulder. She stilled immediately, feeling dread creep down under her armor.

"Fuck." She muttered, bringing her head back to smack light against Optimus in dismay.

(Line Break)

"_Drink it."_

"_No._"

They were back to where they started, only this time having a much bigger audience. Mudflap and Skids were switching between snickering and staring in awe at her for defying Ratchet- standing close to her berth to 'get a good view of the action'. Wheeljack, Arcee, and Red Alert stood together with Jolt- who Ratchet had glared into submission when he had asked if the medic needed any help getting her to drink- by the far wall. Red Alert seemed to be pestering the only femme on base, interrogating the pink scout on what they talked about. Optimus and Ironhide were standing by the door, constantly receiving vicious glares from her that promised _vengeance_. Prowl was quiet, leaning against the wall opposite the group of four. Ratchet had gripped at first about having almost all of the Bots in his medical bay. Optimus had democratically called it 'insurance'.

In other words, they wanted to make sure she wouldn't catch them off guard again.

The only thing that surprised her was the _others_ in the room.

On the berth a few meters away from her sat Will and Epps, Simmons pacing and sending her looks behind them.

"If you don't drink it you'll go into stasis lock." Ratchet bit out grudgingly. She stiffened along with the other Bots present. She scrunched up her faceplates, looking at the cube with distain.

"Or I could drink it, throw up, and go into stasis lock anyway."

"You won't purge." The medic insisted firmly. She sent him a skeptical look and he let out a sigh. He jiggled the cube in front of her. "Just try?" He finally conceded. She hesitated while the twins moved closer, now standing on each side of her legs that dangled over the side.

"It ain't that bad." Mudflap encouraged. She grit her metal teeth, snatching the cube and downed it as quickly as possible. She gagged as the last of it slid down her throat, body shuddering in disgust. Slowly, she lowered her hand and waited.

"Now was that so hard-" Ironhide started to grip-

-then she doubled over and purged.

Ratchet had the presence of mind to jerk back, just barely keeping himself from getting covered in the pink liquid. Mudflap and Skids were not so lucky.

"Shit, man!"

"This is the max on the McNasty scale, yo."

After what felt like an eternity for her, which was only really a few moments, her tanks were finally empty. Yet, she continued to dry heave for all she was worth. Her whole frame shook.

"I'm s-s-sorry." She stuttered out before she was cut off by her own raw sob. She brought her clawed servos up to clench her opposite upper arms. To the twins' credit, their complaining stopped immediately. She let out a pathetic _whir_ of distress. She hated throwing up, especially in front of other people. All of the Bots looked like they wanted to help but were hesitant to do so, as if she would react badly.

"A-Arcee." She mumbled. The pink scout shot forward without a moment to spare, her servo rubbing comfortingly against her shoulder, cooing and clicking softly.

"Everyone out. _Now_." Ratchet ordered crossly, shifting to a more placating tone when he addressed the twins. "Mudflap, Skids, you two need to get cleaned up before the energon stains your armor." The Bots headed out of the room, slowly. She noticed the Autobot leader hesitate as the others shuffled out.

_:: Stay, I need to speak to you about something important. ::_ He nodded. She then sent a second message to Wheeljack.

_:: Wait outside. We'll need you back in here in a minute. ::_ There was an affirmative send back, curiosity shining over the response.

"_Optimus-"_ The CMO started before the last Prime interjected.

"He wishes me to stay." She nodded when the medic looked at her questioningly, giving him a sheepish smile as her shaking stopped.

"I told you I would spew chunks." She accused in a half-hearted manner, giving him a wobbly grin to show she wasn't really angry. The metal near the edge CMO's lip plating twisted at her description.

"You did. Though I have to wonder why a Cybertronian body would reject energon. The Decepticons must have put the energon directly into your tanks when you were injured."

"Why can't you just do that?" She questioned, tilting her head curiously.

"I was hoping I wouldn't have to." Ratchet admitted, "That practice is only used in severe conditions. Megatron's body shouldn't have reacted as it did. I didn't want to make a habit out of you not refueling properly."

"Ah." She responded noncommittally. She looked up at Arcee when the pink Bot shifted.

"Are you alright now?" The femme questioned in concern. She patted Arcee's hand, giving her what she hopped would be a reassuring smile to show that she was okay now.

"I'm fine." She assured. The girl sent out a message for Wheeljack to come back. When the door opened Ratchet had already pulled out a wrench and whipped it at the wall next to Wheeljack's head.

"Whoa, easy there Ratch'." The technician raised his hands in the universal sign of surrender. "The youngin' invited me back 'ere." The CMO raised an optic ridge in her direction and she nodded, giving a sheepish smile. Her head turned towards Wheeljack.

"You're a scientist, right?" She titled her head while staring at the Bot that resembled Einstein.

"Not as in depth as Perceptor, but yes." His optics shone, silently asking where she was going with this. Her features suddenly morphed into a cheerful grin, optics dragging over to lock with Prime's.

"I have a present for you." She informed at last with a gleam in her eye that would have sent some running for the hills. "Well actually, there are more, a lot more. I only have two of them right now, though. Maybe I should yell Merry Christmas each time you get one. Some of them might be subtle." She mused to herself as she noticed the Prime get steadily wary and curious.

"Presents?" He inquired when she trailed of in thought. She snapped back quickly, giving a happy nod.

"I think present is a much nicer word than bargaining chip, don't you?"

"Bargaining chip?" He repeated, sounding even more like a nervous parrot.

"Well," She drew the word out, rolling it over her glossa and pausing for dramatic effect. She lifted her clawed servo, holding up two fingers. "Two presents, two conditions. Sounds fair, right?" She said in the most innocent voice she could, not an easy feat with the Harbinger of Death's vocal cords.

"What are your conditions?" Optimus asked democratically, obviously seeing no harm in hearing her out.

"I'm really fucking tired." She deadpanned. "I want a berth to sleep in and be left _alone and uninterrupted_ until I wake up naturally." The Prime looked surprised at her first demand.

"Of course." He replied automatically. She leaned forward suddenly, staring directly into the leader's optics with a serious expression. All traces of humor, cheerful, dry, or otherwise wiped away.

"One of your gifts is a location. _But_," She said sharply, "_If_ I give it to you, you have to give me your _word_ that you will not go until I tell you it is _safe_. You will not go without contacting me; _requesting permission_ and if I say no, _you do not go_. If you chose to ignore a warning I give you, if you go back on your word," She saw he was about to object on something or other about honor and how he would never do such a thing but she continued on, "-if you _don't listen to me _people _will die._" A brief, heavy silence descended on the group of five before Optimus finally responded after an inner debate.

"You ask for a place to rest and my trust. I can accept your terms." He decided as his deep baritone resonating, optics softening. She blinked. When he put it like that she sounded a lot less selfless. He really put more faith into her character than really needed to be there.

"That's cool." She blurted out before she shook her head before trying- and failing- to put her serious face back on. "I need to hear you swear it, though." She added with her lip-plates quirking into a frown. He nodded in assent.

"I, Optimus Prime, will not go nor send any of my Autobots to the unknown location, once disclosed, without permission." He looked at her for approval.

"Okay, awesome." She kept her optics trained on every 'Bot, hoping to see all of their reactions to her present as she reached into her subspace.

The pink crystal of untapped energon lay comfortably in her clawed hand, unaware of the various emotions its presence caused. There was mostly silent, stunned surprise.

"Merry Christmas." She uttered cheerfully, "Sorry I didn't get it gift wrapped or at least a bow but you know how busy a base can get." She added offhandedly.

"Is that…?" Wheeljack breathed in awe.

"Yep."

"And you-?" Arcee finally forced out.

"Uh-huh."

"How did you-?" Ratchet croaked.

"Because I'm awesome, that's how." She stated smugly.

"Where did you find-?" The Prime started but she held up a hand as she grinned, making him pause.

"I'd like to cash in my first condition now." She interjected. She stood up and carefully placed, as Starscream would call it, the 'unstable, raw energon' in the technician's servos. Only now did she realize she might have technically been carrying around something akin to an Atomic Bomb.

'_Holy fucking jiblets.' _

…She really needed some sleep.

"Okay, is anyone going to tell us what that is?" An annoyed male voice called from a berth she was standing near.

"_Jesus-motherfucking-Christ."_ She screamed, jumping to the side. Suffice to say, the fact that everyone forgot to take the humans out of the room may have surprised her _just a little bit_. The other Bots looked shocked as well, if not then at least a little embarrassed. She glanced down, seeing the humans who hadn't been in clear view either.

'_Me thinks someone wasn't as innocently forgotten like they'd like to appear.'_

"Dude," the male voice she now identified as Epps instead of 'Oh my god, random creeper voice. Scream and run!' said with a chuckle, "You just screamed like a little girl." A million snarky comebacks flew across the forefront of her mind. Ranging from, 'Bitch, I am a girl. You think I'm not pretty enough, douchebag?' to the oh-so-threatening-and-probably-wouldn't-be-appreciated 'We'll see who screams like a little girl when I track down your wife and skull fuck her.'

What? She was a sadistic bitch when she was tired.

…She really, _really_ needed to get some sleep.

Thankfully, before response could get past the tip of her tongue Simmons barged into the conversation.

"What is with kids today? It's like they're all taught how to use extortion." He gripped, obviously remembering his time as a Sector Seven agent during Bumblebee's release. She noted that someone had told him her unbelievable story and surprised that he didn't question it at all. She guessed working around giant metal aliens would do that to a guy.

"Rather be an extortionist than a fifty year old virgin that lives with his mother." She quipped. Epps made an 'ooh' sound, bringing a fist up to his mouth. Will looked like he was trying hard not to laugh.

"Hey, I get a lot of action, kid. And she lives with me. _My mother _lives with _me_. There's a big difference!" He shouted, pointing at her and shaking his arm.

"Oh, sorry," She responded, sounding unapologetic, "Lives with his mother and _lies_ about it." The man let out a frustrated noise, throwing his arms up before stomping back towards the two other men. One of them was positively roaring with mirth while the other tried to stifle his laughter. She only faintly heard bursts of static from behind her.

"Youngling," Optimus caught her attention, "You may recharge here." She nodded in thanks.

"Wait, you guys still haven't told us what that is." Will stated, jerking his head at the energon crystal that sat innocently in Wheeljack's curled palms.

"I just realized something." She said abruptly. "Isn't raw energon also radioactive?" Ratchet rushed to one of the boxes in the corner of the medbay, pulling out what looked like a large containment cylinder. He moved back near Wheeljack, the other mech sliding the crystal into the case carefully before sealing the lid.

"Raw energon doesn't cause harm to organics unless it's touched or kept in close contact for a long period of time." He informed. The humans relaxed somewhat, still staring warily at the case Wheeljack held securely.

"So that's how energon normally looks?" Epps specified. "I always thought it came in block form."

"Does your fuel come from the source in wrappers?" Arcee shot back in barely recognizable amusement.

"Wheeljack, you might want to get your equipment and pick a hanger that you find suitable." The Prime said the order like a suggestion.

"Yes, sir." The Bot gave a grin and a salute before heading out, still holding the container like a precious object.

"Arcee, you should probably go with him." The human female added. The femme was about to protest. "Don't want him to blow up half the base." She joked. The pink scout looked at her for a long moment before conceding, following the mech out the door. Optimus reached for the berth with both hands spread, his palms up as he set them down. Will and Epps climbed on without protest but Simmons looked skeptical.

"I could always help you down if you don't feel comfortable with Prime." She offered, flashing the Mama's boy with a toothy grin. That seemed to finalize his decision as he clambered onto the tall mech's hand.

"Don't drop me." He bit out. Ratchet and the girl snorted in unison. The Prime placed them down by the human sized door, politely commenting that she needed to recharge. Ratchet patted the top of the berth she had previously occupied.

"We'll refuel you manually first." She hopped up onto the berth without protest, feeling exhaustion wash over her again. He pressed down on her shoulder, encouraging her to lean back. She did so, keeping herself propped up on her elbows so she could see what he was doing in case she ever had to do it herself. Ratchet continued talking as he went to go get energon from a shelf.

"We'll do this procedure until Wheeljack and I can figure out why you're rejecting our basic life source. I'll try a few different brews to see if you can handle of those any better. Is there anything specific that nauseates you so?" He was back by her berth, prodding her side with careful, metal digits.

"It clogs my throat and it burns." She answered factually. She glanced at the Prime who had turned and averted his eyes.

'_Why would he-'_ She jerked suddenly as she felt something come undone with a faint _click_.

"The _fu-_"

"Stay still." She looked down with wide optics. He had found the hatch that opened her armor, having slid his servo under the top plating.

That was the equivalent to reaching up her shirt and _ripping off her skin_.

'_Mother of god._' She let out a _chirrup_ in discomfort and saw Ratchet look up abruptly. Optimus glanced at her stricken face and stepped up to her other side.

"_Prime_-_"_ The CMO warned. She was looking down at her opened abdomen; she saw that the chest plates that lead to Megatron's spark were still closed securely. Below her chest lay Megatron's organs in full view. She quickly reached out and latched onto the towering leader's wrist as she tried to calm herself down.

'_It's not the same as human skin or organs. It's just like lifting the hood of a car. There's nothing wrong. It doesn't hurt. I'm okay. I'm _okay. _Stop_ freaking out.' She looked down to see Ratchet calmly take out a tool and open a port in her tank. He placed the cone tool at the port, pouring energon from the few cubes he had grabbed into her. She focused on the ping box that read energon in her vision that steadily rose in number. When her tank was finally filled to the brim the CMO closed the port. He pushed the metal back into place and latched her closed securely with another distinct _click_. She let out a whoosh of air, finally releasing her crushing grip on the Autobot leader's wrist. When he shook it discreetly she couldn't help but let out a short laugh.

"Get some sleep." The Prime prompted gently. She nodded agreeably, optics dimming as she lowered herself fully.

"Any one wakes me up for less than the world ending then I'll kill 'em, I'll kill 'em till they're dead." She threatened half-heartedly before she slipped into recharge. Her last thought was wondering if Jeff Dunham was in this universe too.

(Line Break)

"_How the frick did he find energon?_" Wheelie asked incredulously, the first out of the stunned Cybertronians in the main hanger to respond. He sat on the raised platform among Will, Epps, Simmons, Brains, Galloway, and Keller- who had been called in about an hour before. Optimus Prime had just finished updating them on what happened after they were all told to leave, having refused to speak until everyone was present. Excluding Bumblebee, who was listening in over the communication link.

"Why is the youngling alone?" Arcee demanded a half a second later, glancing from Ratchet to Optimus. She and Wheeljack had returned, the scientist not letting the containment unit clutched between his servos out of his sight.

"As I have said, one if his conditions was to have an uninterrupted recharged in solitude." Then an amused look shaped his features. "If he is woken he threatened to 'kill us until we're dead'." Prowl twitched were he stood.

"That is redundant." He said bluntly.

"Humans usually are." Ironhide imputed in a dry tone.

"Hey! I take offense to that." Epps shouted; lips twitching as he tried to keep a serious face.

"Only because you know it's true." Will pointed out with a mock disappointed shake of his head.

"He threatened you and you treat it like a joke?" Red Alert interjected in alarm. A few Bots sigh in aggravation.

"Red, don't ya' think if he was going to do anything that he would have don't it by now?" Wheeljack asked skeptically.

"If he was going to do something he would do it now _when no one is watching him!_"

"I trust him." Optimus informed simply. The Head of Security balked.

"You just _met him_."

"So you do believe that he is telling the truth about being from a different dimension but not the fact that he won't harm anyone on base?" Sideswipe pointed out.

"_No. _Well, yes but-"

"Trust is earned." Ironhide gruffly added.

"He is willing to put trust in me, why should I not extend the same courtesy?" No one had a retort for the Prime.

"Well, if you're all done, we have more important matters to attend to." Galloway called out as he pulled a folder from his suitcase, gaining everyone's attention in the process.

"What, Director Galloway, would that be?" The Prime asked with narrowed optics, voice colder than before.

"From your reports this _child _has been at the Decepticon base of operations for the last week or so. Why have you not gotten that information?"

"The reason would be that the health of the _youngling_," Ratchet stressed, "was in jeopardy. In simple terms, he was starving and physically exhausted."

"Yet you were still able to get whatever is in that case." Galloway motioned to Wheeljack.

"It was a gift. We had no idea he was in possession of it." Optimus corrected. The Director flipped through the folder in his possession.

"He is a human in mind, correct?" Without waiting for a confirmation he kept speaking. "Do any of you know where he was born?"

"No. How is that relevant-" Galloway shut his folder with a snap, cutting off the Prime.

"If he is an American then he is under jurisdiction of the United States. We'll get information as we see fit. He will be moved from this base of operations and placed under more _watchful _care."

"_Director Galloway-_" Keller started.

"You can't do that!" Mudflap yelled, his brother echoing his agreement. The Director looked the twins, adjusting his glasses while he looked at them like they were bugs on his window shield.

"In the matter of National Security," The man glared, "We can do anything we deem necessary."

"Whelp, that's going on youtube." Heads and helms shot towards the voice of the irritated human-gone-Decepticon that stood in the metal door way. Galloway sputtered.

"You- _you can't-_" Anything he said from then on she tuned out, dragging her dim and aggravated optics over the Cybertronians and humans in the room. She was wondering which one to murder first. It seemed her inner thoughts bled into her stance if the way the mechs glanced between her and the irate human were anything to go by. Vague she heard the Director still prattle on. What was he bitching about?

"-_matter of National Security _and _person rights-_"

Something about National Security and being a hypocritical douche.

Then, before she realized what she was doing she was across the room, towering- no, _looming_- over the metal platform.

"_Shut the fuck up!" _She suddenly screamed at the top of her lungs. For good measure she just screamed out in an un-worded screech of rage for a few seconds longer. Her red optics locked onto the now pale and silent, _spineless maggot_.

"First of all, next time you try and back _any _of the Cybertronians into a corner- Decepticon or Autobot- I will _murder you_. Second, if you really do have balls of steel and attempt it, _make sure someone isn't broadcasting the conversation over an open communication link_. Third, you don't know my citizenship, so don't threaten until you have all of your facts straight. Four, even if I am American _I'm from a different goddamn dimension_. You have no power over me, politically, ethically, or otherwise. _Oh look number five_; I will not be caged like some fucking animal. Don't pretend you would do anything else. You would treat me like a metal lab rat. _Just an FYI, _you even try and I will shove Megatron's claws down your throat faster than you can blink. Sixth, _I hate lists!" _She glared down at him with contempt for a long moment before her face twitched. Then all of her anger fell from her stance and she snicker before she burst out laughing, falling to the ground. "Oh god, I'm so tired." She commented, only making her burst out into more giggling.

"Did," She let out a snort, "-did I miss anything, Optimus?" She choked out, pressing a servo over her face plates as she tried to stop the hysterical laughter.

"I think you got everything." He responded, looking somewhat dazed. The twins stared at her in awe while Sideswipe looked at her appraisingly. Mirage nodded to her in silent approval.

"Awesome." She stated. "I'm going back to bed now."

(Line Break)

She woke up later, alone in the medbay. She checked her internal clock and was not that surprised that it was the next day around noon. By the time the Wheeljack and Red Alert had found them Arcee and she had been hiding well past noon. When she had finally gotten to sleep after her complete blow up at the Director it was around eight at night.

Two days with no sleep did not make her patient with lying bastards.

So how many days had she been in this dimension now?

The first day she had freaked out and left the Decepticon base. On that day she had met the Autobots, gotten shot by Prowl, fixed by Ratchet, accused of lying by Red Alert, ran away from the base, fallen out of the sky, almost died, alerted everyone that there was a youngling on earth, hitched a ride back to the Decepticon base with Starscream, and screamed like a little bitch and passed out.

Then she had had three days passed while she recovered and when she had finally risen she told the Decepticons where to find energon and thus, saved all of their lives.

Another seven days among the Decepticon base had gone by before they finally went out to collect the energon. On that day she had flashbacks, ice slides, seekers bitching in her audio receptors, a Decepticon party, saved Simmons from the clutches of Barricade, and flew across the US only to have to fly all the way to Diego Garcia.

By the time she reached the new Autobot base it had been morning, yesterday. She had fought against Ratchet and Optimus and was _still _able to catch them off guard long enough to escape and run around the base. She ran into Arcee, learned that her infection of Megatron's mind had basically saved the pink scout's life and the life of her sisters, been captured and taken back to Ratchet only to puke her guts out. She had also managed to make a bargain with the Autobot leader, trading the crystal and eventually the location for sleep and control over when they would visit it. Oh, and let's not forget that she had the ultimate bitch-fit of all bitch-fits _ever_ over Galloway and probably scared the shit out of the spineless man. If he didn't quit, she had to give him major credit in the balls factor.

So… only twelve days?

Damn, she was good.

She stopped her musings for the moment, turning over on her side as she scanned the room. It was a large hanger, not as huge as the main building but close. Medical berths lined the wall across from the double doors. Off to the side stood a few giant shelves, boxes and tools placed neatly on each elevated row-

-She was bored.

That thought slammed into like a volley ball to the face. _And she would know_. She didn't want to contact the Autobots. Then they would know she was awake and aware, thus giving them all the time in the world to interrogate her. She also didn't want to comm. one of the Decepticons either. The only two that could actually hold a decent conversation with her were Soundwave and Starscream. The Third in Command would question her on her absence and Starscream would bitch her ear off. Yet, she wasn't suicidal enough to go poking through Ratchet's medical equipment. She had no idea what most of it _was_, let alone what it _did_. Plus, what if he came back in? _What if she broke something?_

He would 'weld her helm to her aft'.

That was one of the things she had no desire to experience in the Transformers world.

So, for some completely _stupid_ reason, she deemed rifling around Megatron's subspace would be less dangerous.

Repeat; _stupid_.

So far, she had found a few energon cubes- high grade included-, spare scrap metal and plating, something that looked like a blowtorch that she almost burnt herself with. A few curses and a re-subspaced fire-thing-of-death later, she pulled out something that left her dumbfounded.

In her clawed hand she held the Allspark Fragment.

She once read about going into shock. People don't feel anything, no pain, no panic, no fear. They're just numb. That's how she felt when she stared at the shard of the most powerful object in Cybertronian history that lay in her clawed servo like it was an everyday thing.

Then the gravity of the situation sunk into her frizzing processor.

She panicked.

'_Holy shit- Allspark Fragment- not supposed to have- bad, bad, bad- __**hide the evidence!**__' _When the last part of her frantic thought seemed like a brilliant idea she heaved herself to her feet. She rushed to a door in the back of the medibay that she hadn't cared about before –and seemed like a safe haven now. The door hissed closed behind her, casting her into darkness as she started to put her half thought out plan into action.

Then promptly wished she picked somewhere else when she ran forward and stabbed her stomach on an end table with a medical berth. She cursed violently, doubling over and coughing as her optics focused in the no light.

She launched herself back, the fragment slipping from her claw as she tried to get as far away from the _body _as possible. She jerked forward when she realized she lost the shard, ready to grab it from the air when it connected with the corpse's chest. She touched it, ripping the fragment and her arm back when blue electromagnetic sparks pulsed over the dead metal. Her mouth hung open in horror when the mech's body arched, electricity coursing through it before it all stopped abruptly. The small of its back fell back onto the berth with a clang. It was deathly silent and once a few moments passed she concluded that was it. _Nothing else was going to happen_.

Then the gears and fans on the Bot _whirl_ed to life and his optics snapped open and glowed under his visor.

She _screamed_.

(Line Break)

Prowl and Optimus were speaking to each other in the main hanger. Optimus was relieved that his troops were all in agreement over the youngling's truth to his story. Even the Autobot leader had to admit that it wasn't the most believable of tales, but neither were they towards the humans. Could they not take a leap of faith like their allies had? They had to have a long conversation with Prowl and Red Alert about how the death threats he gave weren't actually serious, it was just something humans _did_. He hoped once the youngling woke up the Second in Command and the Security Officer could forge a friendship with him, or at least civility. His only worry was the fact that the youngling seemed to hold a grudge with Prowl. It really was an honest mistake; the mech would _never _have hurt a youngling on purpose.

Then a sudden scream reverberated through the base, making everyone pause before whipping into defensive and offensive stances. They knew the difference between screams of rage and screams of shock. This, however, was a scream of pure _terror_.

The thing that sent chill of fear up his back struts was the fact that he recognized it as the youngling- or Megatron's- vocals.

The sound of a jet suddenly sent the Prime racing forward. Had the Decepticons found the base? Had they figured out about the youngling? Were they hurting him? Where they _killing-_

The door the Prime was about to go through, energon sword in hand, shot open, a jet flying through before it changed in midair. He tried to jump back but he was grappled and fell backward with a sharp _bang_.

Only adding to his confusion was the youngling's hurried rambling and pleads.

What was going on?

(Line Break)

She bolted out of the room and into the hall, running faster than she ever thought possible. In her blind panic she transformed, her Cybertronian jet screaming down the hall at breakneck speeds. How she didn't run into walls or made it past corners she would never know. But sooner than she anticipated she was transforming back and slamming into the battle ready Prime. They feel to the floor and she couldn't help it.

She rambled.

"I'm so sorry, I didn't mean it. I didn't _even know he had it_. I shouldn't have tried to- but then- and now he's- but he wasn't before! _How can that even happen?_ It's not supposed to be able to-! Unless it didn't- but it did- but not right. Oh dear god, _I made a zombie._ Don't let it _eat me._" She cried out, dragging the large mech to his feet and clinging to him.

"Wha-"

"Oh god," She continued as she frantically tried to make herself smaller so the Autobot leader completely covered her from sight and failing. "He's going to kill me. He thinks I am who I'm not and I'm going to die. No, even worse, Prowl and the zombie are going to have robot sex where the zombie will infect him. Then they'll tear me apart in the afterglow!" She wailed. The Police Bot shuttered his optics quickly in shock. She could practically hear the gears in his head try to keep up.

"Wait, _wha-"_ Arcee started.

"I draw the line at alien robot zombie sex!" She proclaimed loudly.

"… Has he glitched?" Mirage wondered. She snarled at him.

"_No! _You don't _get_ it, the zombie is-" Suddenly the door to the main hanger opened.

"What's crackin', bitches?"


	8. Chapter 8

**This is the revised chapter. I merged my original draft and the one I posted before. Many things are the same but I would appriciate you reading it again anyway because there is a new confrontation, a new beginning, it's longer, and more foreshadowing about what's going to happen in the next chapter. Thank you for dealing with me and my chapter replacement. **

**Now I'm going to tell you what almost happened to my original draft yesterday at 1 am. I had been trying to sleep, vaguely thinking of scenes and plot points that I was going to add when I realized I liked my original idea better but I knew that the recent one had key points to continue. I logged on my computer and was going to attempt to merge them but well, what happened with me was that I cut the scene from my Bloopers draft. Something popped up but I pressed 'no' on habit. Then, when I went to paste it on another open doc _there was nothing to paste_. Unfortunately, I had saved the other draft after I cut the scene. So it wasn't anywhere. I sat there, completely crushed. Heaviness settled into my chest as I stared at the blank word document. Then I launched myself into google, looking for anything that could fix it. I tried turning my computer on and off again. I tried looking for something called AutoSave and AutoRecover for over an hour before I finally found it. I was so happy I was on the verge of crying and I still couldn't believe I fixed it. Now, for the next few days I will be thanking any and every God/s I can think of, fate, and the man- who I have dubbed as Carl- who created AutoSave and AutoRecover. Carl, you have restored my faith in human intelligence and planning. I love you so, _so much_.**

**Disclaimer: I only own my OC and Carl. _I fucking love you, Carl._**

Every single one of them _glitched_.

'_Traitorous swine.'_ All of the Autobots collapsed to the ground, the Prime that she clung to going limb with dead weight. She jerked as she tried to keep him from falling face first into the metal floor.

"Oh god, Prime." She burst out frantically, "Don't do this to me now. _Not now_, dammit!" She glanced up to see Jazz _right in front of her_. But instead of ripping her head off the smaller mech helped her stabilize the Autobot leader, throwing on of Prime's arms over his shoulder. He sent her a grin.

"I've got a lot to catch up on, huh?"

"Yeah," She replied with a hysterical note to Megatron's usually dark voice. "Yeah, you do." They both eased the Prime down to the ground carefully. When the large Bot was laid fully on his back Jazz stretched, his back arched as his servos pointed towards the heavens. His joints creaked in disuse and she winced.

"So," Jazz drawled out, "I never heard Megatron let out younglin' sounds of distress before." His optics shone is question as she looked down at her, her body still in a crouched position next to the immobile Prime.

"Yeah, well…" She stalled, rabidly jabbing the leader in the side to get him to _wake up, dammit_.

"You're not him, are ya'?" He inquired with knowing optics, sitting down on his haunches next to her.

"Nope," She responded simply before giving him a wary look, "So there's absolutely _no_ reason to blame me for things _he's_ done, right?"

"Right." He agreed with a good natured grin. Her stiff frame slumped.

"Oh thank god." She breathed out. The mech chuckled, patting her on the shoulder. She looked up at him curiously then. "How did you know so quickly? It's taken forever to get them all to believe me."

"Just a feelin'. That, and even though I don't remember much from my time in the Well o' Sparks, I still have vague memories." He suddenly looked at her mischievously, "Never seen a patient get the upper hand on the Hatchet before, either." She coughed awkwardly, trying to keep the grin of her features before she scowled at the unmoving mechs.

"They must pay for abandoning me in my time of need." She stated.

"Oh, definitely." Jazz egged her on.

"Help me move them."

(Line Break)

Prowl was hopelessly lost.

He had woken up with one of the biggest processor aches he'd had in a long while. He kept his optics shuddered as he vaguely wondered how someone had convinced him to indulge in enough high grade to give him this bad of a hangover. But no, that wasn't right. Was it? He slowly opened his optics, squinting at the light in the main hanger. Had he passed out? Glitched? After finally concluding that the youngling _was _from a different dimension- not that unbelievable when you used a sub dimensional pocket to hold most of your possessions-, he couldn't think of anything that could surprise him that badly.

He quickly amended his previous thought when he took in the condition of his seemingly recharging comrades.

Jolt lay in a heap, straddling Sideswipe. Not far from them Ironhide curled against the back of the older of the two medics, Ratchet. _Were they spooning?_ He quickly darted his eyes to take in the others. Somehow, the twins had managed to get atop the human platform, their legs and arms dangling dangerously off the sides. Red Alert was in an uncomfortable looking position against the wall, his legs propped and pointing upward. Mirage was sprawled on his front, Arcee's head buried in the small of his back. He looked down at himself only to jerk when he saw two mini bots –Wheelie and Brains- cuddling each other on his abdomen. Wheeljack was a few feet away and curled in a ball, one of his digits placed firmly between his mouth plates. Then he realized their Prime was nowhere in sight.

_:: Sir? ::_ He sent out the static message only to look up towards the ceiling when he heard the receiving static. He did a double take at the Autobot leader _lying across the support beams_.

What the frag had happened?

The Prime mumbled something in his recharge, opening his optics slightly when his systems woke him in reaction to receiving a message. Prowl was given full view of the leader's stages of awareness. First there was disbelief, shuttering his optics repeatedly as if he didn't understand what they were showing him. Then there was the dawning comprehension, the massive jerk of surprise. The effect his action caused sunk in as he slid off of the rafters. Finally the complete awareness when he slammed into the ground. The sound and the shake it caused made every optic snap open.

Mudflap and Skids had jolted awake in surprise, echoing Optimus by crashing into the floor with adding their own yelps and cuss words. Red Alert toppled over awkwardly before jumping up. Wheeljack uncurled, bring his servo away from his mouth and gazing at it in surprise.

"What the frick?" Wheelie exclaimed, dislodging himself from Brains hurriedly, causing him to trip and fall off of the Police Bot. Brains just blinked at him before shrugging. Jolt shoved himself off of Sideswipe with quick apologizes which didn't seem to slip past the silver Bot's stunned surprise. Arcee had stood, optic ridge furrowing in confusion at the mech she had used as a pillow. Mirage just purred something at her with a flirtatious wink.

Ironhide, who had activated his cannons in the one arm and brought the other arm that was wrapped around Ratchet closer to his body on autopilot, was subjected to curses and threats from the medic. The Weapons Specialist, once he realized that there was no threat, huffed in aggravation. Ratchet finally was able to shove the bigger bot away from him with his elbows and clambered to his peds.

"Are you alright, Optimus?" Prowl asked. The large Bot muttered something into the floor before heaving himself up with as with as much dignity he had left.

"I am fine. Is everyone alright?" There were nods all around.

"What happened?" Jolt wondered.

"No clue." Mirage commented.

"Anyone remember anything?" Arcee interjected.

"Not a bit. It seems my memory file is a little fuzzy." Wheeljack replied, dumbfounded.

"I'm thinkin' we glitched." Skids announced. Mudflap smacked his brother on the back of the helm.

"All at the same time, slag head?"

"Ey! It could happen."

"He's right." Ratchet informed, shocking most of those gathered. "We must have, there's no other explanation." Prowl finally stood, glancing at the door for no logically reason. He felt something niggle at the back of his processor, something _familiar_.

"Optimus," the cop bot said slowly, "Where's the youngling?" Everyone stilled, feeling the same familiar prickle.

"He should be recharging…" The Prime trailed off, "But that doesn't seem right. He was just here, wasn't he?"

"I remember screaming." Sideswipe said abruptly. Ironhide nodded in agreement.

"Why was he screaming?" Arcee wondered frantically, "Where _is he_-"

"Jazz…" Prowl suddenly breathed, memory clearing and shooting through him like electricity. The others stared at him, comprehension dawning in their optics as their last memory finally unclouded. "Jazz is online!" He announced, throwing away logic for the moment in a way completely uncharacteristic of himself.

"…Then why isn't he here?" Red Alert whispered.

"He doesn't know." Ratchet broke in suddenly, "Oh Primus, _he doesn't know_."

_:: Jazz! Youngling! ::_ Optimus roared over the communication link for on base, making sure it didn't leak through to Bumblebee yet.

_:: Problem, Boss Bot? ::_ Prowl almost collapsed at the sound of his voice.

_:: Jazz, there a situation you haven't been made aware of. _Where is Megatron?_ ::_

_:: Haven't seen no Megatron around the base… but the younglin' is kickin' it with me. ::_ The Prime couldn't help but be relieved. If Jazz hadn't waited, if he hadn't heard the youngling out, what could have happened when Optimus was unconscious?

_:: What is your location? ::_

_:: Red's secret security room laughing our afts off. Smooth landing, Boss Bot. ::_ Red Alert had the decency to look embarrassed.

"The base needed surveillance." He protested when the others gave him a _look_.

_:: We're on our way back to ya'. :: _Jazz informed.

(Line Break)

"Explain it again, _slowly_." Ironhide growled at her. She gave him a nervous grin. She had tried to explain while apologizing and ended up speaking too fast, running her words together. She sounded somewhat like this: _'Oh god, so sorry-but then I was like AHHOLYSHIT- and I didn't mean to go in your super-secret back room, Ratchet- so then I dropped it- what do you mean dropped what? I _told you already_- and it went all BLARGZOMBIEMAKINGTIME so I ran and-'_

Suffice to say, her first explanation hadn't been the best.

"Please don't let him be another Bluestreak." Mirage muttered from where he stood. The Bots had sat her and Jazz on a boxcar. While Ratchet scanned the grinning Black Ops mech sitting on the box car next to her while the other interrogated her.

Jazz had already slid into the spot next to her without even a flinch or a hesitant second. Arcee and Wheeljack claimed the seats nearer to the other side of her, forming an arch in the half circle. The mini bots sat comfortably on Wheeljack's shoulders, Wheelie making a show of running his optics along the only femme's frame. Arcee ignored the scrap drone completely. The twins sat down on the ground next to her and Jazz's boxcar on the revived mech's side. Mirage, Jolt, Red Alert, and Sideswipe stood near the wall far opposite the pink scout and technician. Ironhide, Ratchet, Prowl, and Optimus Prime stood firmly in front of her and Jazz's boxcar like adults about to scold their children and providing a united front. She grimaced at the analogy.

"Explain." Prowl ordered a third time, no room for arguments. She opened her mouth as she raise a hand and promptly realized she had no idea how to explain without rushing again or sounding guilty. Her mouth hung open for a second more before her arm lowered jerkily, lips shifting into a frown. When she didn't speak for a few moments; Jazz quirked an optic ridge at her. At the small movement Prowl focused on him like a hawk.

"I don't suppose you would know?" Ratchet mused, staring down the mech.

"No clue." Jazz responded cheerfully. Ironhide let a snort as Ratchet let out a ragged sigh.

"Youngling, can you just tell us what happened?" Optimus pried gently. She commended them on the good cop bad cop routine.

"Well, a lot of stuff has happened; you'll have to be _specific-"_ She countered nervously before Prowl cut her off.

"Tell us what happened with _Jazz_. That is the most relevant we would logically discuss that first."

"He was dead. Now he's alive. Is it that hard to grasp?" She imputed.

"But _how_?" Ironhide growled.

"Magic?" She squeaked. When they sent her extremely incredulous looks she rushed out the explanation.

"Okay," She started before pausing, "You know this isn't really my fault, right? It was _Gallo-_"

"Director Galloway isn't on the base." Prowl informed.

"I didn't mean _directly_. I meant _technically_." She pointed out. Ironhide let out a ragged breath while the Prime sighed.

"Just start from when you awakened." Optimus suggested.

"I was _so bored_ and I didn't want to mess with Ratchet's equipment because he would have _killed me_ for looking through his stuff." Ratchet sent her a sharp stare for even thinking of playing with dangerous medical tools.

"_Which_, you ended up doing anyway." The medic gripped.

"_Anyway_, so I was like, 'I wonder what's in Megatron's sub pockets, maybe he has candy.' But now that I think about it, that would have been creepy as_ fuck-_" She cut off abruptly, imagining Megatron with an alien space ship and 'FREE CANDY' written on the side in bold red marker. She snickered and somehow figured out how to send a picture message to Jazz. The duo static earned them suspicious looks, only gaining in intensity when Jazz burst out laughing.

"So," She continued before anyone could ask, "then I kind of rifled through his stuff." Optimus looked more and more disturbed, possibly thinking of all of the dangerous things she could have encountered in his brother's pocket.

His brother's pocket.

'_Oh god.'_ She slapped a servo to her faceplates. She knew this was supposed to be a serious conversation. But why did her gutter mind have to intervene? When she stopped heaving from suppressed mirth she spoke as if nothing had happened, making the mechs more wary.

"You _didn't_." The Prime begged.

"I think it's pretty obvious that I _did_." She retorted.

"Then I sort of… maybe…" She coughed loudly over her words, "_foundyourlostAllsparkfragment."_

"You did _what?_"

"-So I freaked out," She rushed ahead, leaving the gaping robots stuck on the last part of her story, "ran into Ratchet back room to hide it-"

"You were going to _hide-_"

"In _my _medical bay-"

"-Then I found Jazz's dead body. Freaked out _more,_ dropped the damn thing, and when I tried to pick it up it went all spazz-tastic with blue electricity and everything. Now Jazz is alive and-ta da, instant zombie." She fished with a flourish, waving her arm towards Jazz.

"Zombie?" Wheelie asked while looking at the Bot dubbed as such with a wary optic.

"Da hell is that?" Skids smacked his brother when Mudflap asked the question.

"It means he's gonna eat our processors."

"Not like you two have any to worry about." Ironhide quipped. There were duo cries of outrage. Red Alert, curiosity piqued, searched the internet on the term 'zombie'. The donning horror on his face prompted Jolt to console the mech over a private communication link.

Then out of nowhere Ironhide started booming with laughter.

"Care to fill us in on the joke?" Ratchet prodded dryly.

"If Jazz is a zombie, what does that make Optimus?"

"_Ironhide-!_" The Prime cried out, watching the youngling's optics widen.

"If Optimus is a zombie then so is Megatron." She abruptly burst out. "We should make a club." She stated bluntly. "Prime could be the leader, I could supply the brains and Jazz could write our theme song!"

"You're kidding." Mirage uttered in disbelief.

"That's why I don't like energon. I needed brains." She decided, completely ignoring the Italian lilted mech's statement. Then with a grin she stood up and turned on her peds slowly until she locked gazes with a twitching mech that stood next to Jolt.

"Red Alert," She called in a sing song tone. "I need your help with an experiment." The Security Officer's optics widened before he took a step back.

"Oh no!" He yelled, waving his hands in front of him widely as if to ward her off. "Pick someone else to help you."

"Nah." That was the only warning she gave before she pounced forward. The smaller bot yelped, running away from her in the large room. Dark laughter bounced off the walls.

"Should we be concerned?" Jolt questioned.

"-I'll only bite you a _little bit-_"

"-Somebody, _help me-_"

"Nah," Jazz repeated with a grin before jumping up suddenly, joining the chase around the main hanger. "Zombie feeding frenzy!"

"Jazz!" Prowl reprimanded, sounding disapproving. This went on for a few minutes, the two Cybertronians and the girl weaving through the other Bots that had stood as they attempted to pin Red Alert down. Ironhide finally got annoyed, growling when Red Alert darted past him. His arm whipped out straight, firm as a metal beam.

A beam that she smacked into chest first.

With a whoosh of air she fell to the ground like a ton of bricks. She watched as Jazz couldn't stop in time and the older Bot turned, hoisting the revived mech up and over his shoulder. Jazz flipped in midair before landing hard on his back. Her head smacked back down on the floor with a defeated _clang_.

"_Ironhide!_" Optimus yelled for the second time, his voice more stern that before.

"That was unnecessary." Ratchet sounded disappointed and exasperated. He crouched down next to her.

"It got them to stop, didn't it?" The Weapons Specialist replied smugly. The medic rolled his optics before addressing the both of them.

"Are you two alright?" Jazz called his affirmative as he smoothly rolled over and got to his peds.

"_Christ_." She finally wheezed out, "That was almost as bad as the time I feel off my trampoline." She remembered the panicking faces and reactions of her friends when she had the wind knocked out of her and snickered. Ratchet stood up, pulling her along with him when she accepted his outstretched servo.

"Where is the Shard now?" Optimus broke in hurriedly after she was planted firmly on her peds. She paused, looking down at her empty servos as if just noticing that she wasn't still holding the fragment.

"You know, I _don't_ know." She replied, baffled.

"Ya' transformed when ya' were running, weren't cha?" Jazz specified. She nodded and he smirked. "Then it's in your subspace again. Anything not living automatically is pocketed when we transform."

"Oh, well that's a useful feature."

"Sure is. They're lots of other things we can do too. For instance, we can throw an awesome party." His optics glimmered.

"I've been to a Decepticon party."

"Nah, they can't throw a party like I can."

"We will find a much more secure place to hide the Shard this time." Prowl stated, cutting off their side conversation.

"Doubtful." She imputed. "I'll just hang onto it."

"You're trying to take _our _Fragment?" Sideswipe questioned, narrowing his optics.

"Are you serious?" She responded incredulously. "I'm the one who's trying to figure out your plot to save lives. I'm the one who found energon to keep you from starving. I'm the one who brought one of your friends _back to life_ and I'm the person you distrust?"

"Il ragazzo has a point." Mirage interrupted. She sent him a grin.

"See? Mirage gets it." Prowl set his sights on the Italian accented Bot.

"Since you 'get it' would you mind stating the logic behind giving a youngling one of the most powerful objects we possess?"

"I can help with that." She interjected, noticing Mirage's frown. "If you have it, the humans will blackmail you into giving it back to them. In the long run, it's only going to end up with me anyway. This wouldn't be good for anyone, considering the Decepticons would question how you got it back in the first place." She smirked when she saw Prowl's mouth open and close before snapping shut. Jazz let out a short laugh, leaning his bent arm on her shoulder.

"Ya' managed to make Prowler speechless."

"Never seen anyone do that." Ratchet imputed dryly, eyeing her. "Especially not a youngling."

"Never seen a youngling kick yours _and _Boss Bots aft either, Hatchet." Jazz retorted, grinning when the CMO stiffened in surprise.

"How old did you say you was?" Skids questioned loudly.

"I didn't." She answered chipper, giving Arcee a secretive grin. Red Alert, suspicious little bugger that he was, understood what the grin meant.

"_That's _what you told her!"

"And in exchanged I told him how I was saved and my connection with my sisters." Arcee confirmed.

"Well?" Brains prodded. Arcee looked at her for permission and she shrugged. That information had already served its purpose. It was all to help them in the end, anyway. A few facts about herself as figurative payment didn't bother her much.

"The youngling is sixteen Earth years of age."

"Yeah," She burst in quickly, stopping the completive silence from descending full on the group. Her optics shinned with excitement when she continued. "The first car I've _ever _really practiced on was Megatron's alt mode. Then again," She rambled, "It's probably different and with a lot less control with a real car."

"Probably." Jazz said agreeably.

"So…" She drawled after a moment, changing the subject. "When do you think you'll be ready for the energon harvest?"

"It depends on the destination and how quickly our human allies can give us clearance." Optimus admitted.

"Why were the Decepticons celebrating?" Ironhide scoffed after rolling it around in his processor and bringing them back to their previous side conversation, "We've kicked their afts and sent them packing in all the recent battles." She just looked at him blankly, waiting for it to click. Sideswipe was the first to yell at her.

"You told the Decepticons _where the energon is_?" He snarled, getting right up in her face as his sword slid from where he kept it. She didn't flinch, only stared and waiting for him to finish. "You _traitor-_"

"_Sideswipe_," Optimus barked, "Stand down."

"But Prime-"

"_Now!"_ He half roared, half commanded. His face guard slid over his face as his optics stared the shorter bot down. Sideswipe's stance didn't falter but his sword slid back into place and he stepped back, lowering his helm.

"Yes, sir." He acknowledged rigidly.

"You know if you people actually let me _explain_ before you attack me, things would all go a lot smoother."

"Then explain it, youngling."

"They were starving, I found them energon." There was a pregnant pause, waiting for her to continue but when she did not Mirage found the courage to speak.

"Is that it?" She looked at him sharply.

"They were suffering, I helped them. Does there really need to be another reason?"

"But-"

"Are you an _Autobot_ or _aren't you?_" She forced in a gritted tone.

"That's why you wanted to be able to decide when we go or not." Red Alert crowed in suspicion, "You wanted to _ambush _us!"

"The exact opposite, actually." She replied in a dry tone. "I don't want either faction running into each other, especially with," She made air quotes, "'raw, unstable energon'that if hit with gunfire could 'blow up half the continent if you're not careful'."

"That still doesn't change the fact that you told them the location first." Prowl noted. Jazz sent him a disapproving look that the mech seemed to wither slightly under.

"They could get there faster, they had the equipment to find and harvest it more efficiently, and frankly they needed it more than you did."

"They're _the enemy-"_ Sideswipe started to protest.

"Correction: they are _your _enemy. I'm neutral territory."

"You're supplying their fighters with energon!" Red Alert countered. There was a long pause where she stared off into space for a moment before she spoke quietly.

"There's more to it than that." Images of sparklings withering in their sacks flickered in front of her eyes. They were never given a fair chance to live and to save their dwindling race. They had been suffering the slowest and torturous death while the adult Cybertronians starved themselves as much as they could just to give them a few more minutes.

She wasn't the only reason Megatron couldn't stand to stay on the base in Africa any longer.

But she had given them a better shot, better odds of survival. She would do anything, _absolutely anything,_ to give them a future. While she didn't think another race should be destroyed so Cybertronians could live, she could see where the Decepticons were coming from.

"I don't understand." Optimus admitted, bringing her back to the present.

"You don't need to." She retorted, "You just have to trust me. I did get your word, didn't I?" She held out a clawed hand. His age old optics bore into her soul. He seemed to be satisfied with what he found. He clasped his hand in her.

"You hold my trust. Help me prove it is a wise decision." She grinned.

"You bet." The only thing that ruined the moment was Sideswipe rushing out of the main hanger in fury. Mirage looked up at their leader.

"I'll make sure he doesn't do anything too drastic." He murmured. Only when the Prime nodded, slipping his hand from hers did the bot leave.

"So, where was I?" Jazz interjected, cutting through the tense air that had covered the room like a dense fog. "Oh yeah, I remember. Another thing we can do is block our pain sensor nodes-"

"You can do _what-_"

Someone was in deep shit for not telling her that sooner.

"So where are we headed?" Jolt asked, obviously seeing her darkening mood. She frowned at the fact that he was trying to change the subject before grinning. She shifted forward till she was leaning conspiratorially.

"Lady and Gentlemen, we are taking a trip to the Arctic Circle."

(Line Break)

She was sincerely surprised on how quickly they had gotten permission.

Once they had contacted Keller, the man had been able to convince the President that it was urgent and a high priority. She heard along the grapevine that Galloway hadn't said a word during the meeting, looking paler than normal when the term 'youngling' came up.

Will and Epps had laughed so damn hard afterwards.

They would be flying to a United States Military Base in Greenland known as Thule Air Base. This was the checkpoint and as far as they were allowed to travel by plane. An aircraft carrier would be ready to sail them the rest of the way into the Arctic Circle.

The Bots chosen to go were Optimus, Ratchet, Sideswipe –who Mirage had convinced to come back to the base after he ran off to drive around the horseshoe shaped island-, Ironhide, Prowl, Wheelie, Jazz, Wheeljack, herself, and Bumblebee. The yellow Bot had been filled in –and completely ecstatic- on the current events. He was chosen because he was the only Autobot that had dealt with ice. Sam and Mikaela, even after some debate about the energon radioactivity, were allowed to tag along. A second plane was sent for the three of them to take them to the checkpoint. A few NEST soldiers, including Lennox and Epps, and one civilian, Simmons, would be accompanying them. The Bots left on base were Arcee, Jolt, Red Alert, Mirage, Mudflap, Skids, and Brains. The mini-bot had said he preferred not freezing his aft off.

Right now they were in a large cargo plane and ready to go. They had already gathered all of the equipment they had decided was necessary and then some. All of the humans were donned with coats and winter gear. She was tense as she sat down on the metal that served at the floor of the plane. Ironhide transformed down, allowing Will and Epps to clamber inside before takeoff. Simmons had followed, not showing any outside discomfort. Wheeljack and Optimus followed his example, allowing the rest of the ten soldiers into their alt forms. Wheelie, not wanting to be packed like a sardine and not daring to try to get into Ironhide gave her a wary glace, as if debating it. Jazz plopped down next to her, waving over the small drone to come join them. Ratchet and Sideswipe sat at the other side of the plane across from them. Prowl sat near the back of the aircraft, eyes trained on the recently revived mech.

She felt a thrill go through her when she wondered if Prowl x Jazz was cannon.

Obviously, with the possibility of hours of either awkward silence or yelling, it was not a good time to ask.

Wheelie finally grudgingly shuffled over, sitting on Jazz's foot with a huff just as the pilot murmured something over the speakers.

"What did he-" She started before she felt the plane moved.

They were on their way.

(Line Break)

A few hours later, she decided to browse the internet.

She didn't see any harm, seeing as they would be on this plane for hours anyway. So, with that thought in mind she opened IE, and purely on routine she opened AOL, logging into her email on autopilot.

Then promptly freaked out when she actually found it.

"_Holy crap!"_ She yelped, startling the Autobots and humans who had been quietly conversing.

"What's wrong?" Ironhide barked, on the verge of activating his defensive protocols. The Bots had transformed back a while ago when the takeoff was over, the humans having already gotten out.

"I opened my email." She answered, bewildered.

"That's it?" Will questioned with obvious relief in his tone.

"You see absolutely _nothing _wrong with that?" She insisted, optics piercing the man.

"N-…" He paused, blinking, "Oh… _oh_. Oh crap."

"_I know!"_ She started searching her other usual sites quickly. When she found all of them intact with her accounts she cursed, standing quickly and pacing the length of the plane. She hacked into searching sites, bypassing the paid membership fees without a care while simultaneously opening Google Earth. She searched her name and the name of her parents, zeroing in on the place where her house stood. She cursed violently when she found both, stating the exact same information she had found every time she had checked on her own computer in her universe.

"_Mother fuck!"_ She screeched, throwing her arms up in anger and planting her feet down with more force than necessary.

"Will, explain." Ironhide ordered. Optimus was already in his bi-pedal mode and trying to get her to calm down.

"I have my _email,_ Prime!" She yelled before Will could get a word in edgewise, _"My email!"_ She repeated for good measure.

"Your email…" He repeated slowly.

"My email and all of my other online accounts except for my most recent Gmail, though the one site looks really outdated, like before they made the updates-" She stilled, optics frozen in place on a spot on the Prime's shoulder without really seeing it.

"Youngling?" The Prime called in concern. She slowly, ever so slowly, wondered what year this was. Her body responded, ping box popping up and answering her question.

**Earth Year: 2010.**

'_Shit. Not only am I dimension hopper, but I'm a time traveler.' _She thought hysterically. She really should have known, though. It's not like the Transformers movies came out this year. She must have been suppressing it. Just like with…

"I have my email." She responded in a voice eerily calm, "But it's not mine, not really. The me in this dimension is fourteen." The final hint clicked, connected the dots.

"There's another one of you here." Ratchet stated.

"Does he _know?_" Prowl emphasized. She shook her head.

"They don't have Transformers cartoons or fanfiction here. There's nothing to know."

"Are you going to try and find him?" Optimus asked seriously, locking gazes with her. She paused.

Would she bother her other self? It's not like the other her could help, she'd probably freak out more than anything. She knew if she didn't know anything about the Transformers she would have a much worse reaction to waking up as a Cybertronian. At first she had been pissed at the thought of another her, yet she knew it wasn't her doppelganger's fault. Still, there were so many things she could warn herself about. Sure, it wouldn't affect her dimension since she had already lived through it, but was that really a reason _not_ to help in some way? For now, she decided not to interfere. Later, she might change her mind but at this moment she would let things be.

"No." She responded, sounding disappointed even to her own ears. She moved back to where she sat before and sunk down, optics staring into empty space.

(Line Break)

She opened her groggy optics that she never remembered closing in the first place. She mumbled something incomprehensible, smacking at whatever what poking her awake.

"Wharg?" She snarled while half asleep as she burrowed her face into a shoulder that supported her face. She didn't give a crap about who was bothering her and what they deemed important. She just wanted to go back to sleep dammit. There were snorts of amusement.

"Young one," The voice she now identified as Prime called. She furrowed her brow plating when she felt the metal under her shake when he spoke, "We're here." She cracked her optics open, glaring darkly at the Autobots looking at her expectantly.

"Cool story, bro." She blurted out before she realized how insensitive that was. She smacked a hand to her forehead. "Shit, I'm sorry. I was referring to an internet thing-"

"It's alright." He replied and she was relieved to see that he wasn't pissed or upset, "We have to change into our alt forms until we are out of sight from the base."

"That's inconvenient, why?"

"The United States government would prefer it if we were discreet."

"'Kay." She mumbled.

"Doesn't Megatron only have Cybertronian alts?" Wheeljack asked curiously. She snorted, using the Prime's shoulder she had previously been leaning on- which she couldn't find the will to care about- to stand up before she transformed into a Mack 10-wheeler tanker truck. After a moment of surprise, the other Bot's transformed down as well. Wheelie climbed into Jazz's alt form quickly, closing her door and transforming into an RC truck a few seconds before the large hatch on the plane opened.

"Hey, guys!" Sam called. She saw Mikaela walking up behind him, Bumblebee sitting immobile outside. None of the people on this base were close enough to hear what they were saying, or who they were saying it to.

"Hello, Sam." Optimus murmured courteously.

"What's up?" He asked, glancing at her without recognition until he spotted the faint Decepticon insignia where the brand symbol should be. "Oh, Bumblebee said you came back." He greeted awkwardly, letting out a nervous laugh as he scratched the back of his head. Mikaela rolled her eyes at Sam good naturedly.

"Hi." Mikaela smiled at her, "I'm glad you're alright. You really worried everybody before."

"Maybe just a little bit." She bantered. Mikaela let out a snicker. She looked up when Sam seemed to freeze, staring at the silver Pontiac Solstice.

"He really did fix you." Sam breathed out.

"Yep. Good as new." Jazz informed.

_:: Glad to have you back, Jazz. ::_ Bumblebee's rarely used, British lilted voice spoke over the Autobot communication link.

_:: Glad to be back. ::_

"Okay," Will started, unaware of the silent conversation, "We have twelve soldiers, three civilians, one mini bot and nine Autobots." She felt a twinge of something warm in her spark when she was accepted as an Autobot from the soldier without a second's hesitation. Although she was more neutral than anything, she couldn't help but be grateful. No one seemed to notice Sideswipe's alt make an ominous rumble.

"Will shall be riding with me." Ironhide announced.

"That fact is obvious." Ratchet replied dryly before continuing. "It is also implied that Sam will be riding with Bumblebee."

"I'll go with the Boss Bot." Epps added before looking at Optimus, "If that's alright."

"I would be honored." The Prime intoned.

"I'm riding with you too." Simmons cut in, knocking on the Prime's passenger door as he sent a wary glance her way. She would have grinned toothily at him if she still had a mouth to use. The Autobot leader let him in without an argument but she saw Will smirk at Epps. The soldier in the Prime's driver seat mouthed a 'help me'. Lennox shook his head, exaggerating the mouthed back 'no'. The rest of the NEST troops clambered into the other Bots, Sam and Mikaela waited for everyone to get situated before they started to walk out to get into Bumblebee. Wheeljack, Optimus, and Ratchet were the only Bots with two humans while Jazz carried the scrap drone.

"_Ahem."_ She barked, "No one is in my car." She noticed the soldiers glance amongst themselves, all reluctant to join her. After a few moments where no one even tried to move Mikaela threw up her arms before stomping over to her alt form, opening and closing the door before anyone could react.

"_Mikaela!"_ Sam's nervous, squeaky voice called.

"Oh, don't be such a little girl, Sam." The mechanically inclined teenager teased. The girl in Megatron's body huffed.

"At least Mikaela isn't a damn pansy." She muttered. Sam stood there with his mouth opening and closing like a goldfish. "Well?" She asked, "Are you going to get to Bumblebee or not?" His mouth snapped shut and he nodded, racing back to his car.

Optimus's engine revved to life, Epps pretending he was actually driving as the Prime rolled down the metal ramp. Ratchet and Ironhide were next, followed by Jazz and Sideswipe. She rolled out after them, Bumblebee driving up from where he was parked before until he was next to her. Wheeljack and Prowl brought up the rear. They bi-passed security easily enough, even with Simmons in the front car. It would take about fifteen minutes to drive from the Thule Airport to the harbor.

"So…" Mikaela started, patting the girl's steering wheel unconsciously, "What's your dimension like?" She tried to sound nonchalant but it was obvious she was curious.

"It's pretty much the same as yours except for the fact that Transformers aren't real. They're just cartoons, movies, and toys." She answered truthfully.

"Ah." Mikaela responded noncommittally. The girl felt an air of awkward silence descend on them.

"Uh, how are you and Sam doing?" She blurted out, feeling guilty that she knew the two were going to break up eventually.

"Oh, we aren't together anymore."

She slammed on the breaks so fast that Wheeljack almost smacked into her.

"_What?"_ They had broken up already? That gave her less time than she had hoped to have. If they had already broken up then what if Sam had already met Carly? What if the two were already living together? What if the plot was further along than she had realized? _What if, what if, what if?_

"Sam and I decided that we just weren't a good match for each other." The human said slowly, heart rate picking up at her silence. The girl in Megatron's body hear the others asking her what the problem was but she ignored them, continuing her way as if nothing had happened.

_:: Youngling, what happened? ::_ Optimus repeated.

_:: Nothing. Drop it. ::_ She bit out. When they all acted like they were going to protest she sighed. _:: Later. :: _She compromised.

(Line Break)

When they reached the end of the long harbor, finally in front of the ship, the humans got out of their alt modes so the Cybertronians could be lifted by crane. She cringed internally when each Bot was lifted one by one. The crew and Captain of the ship had already been informed of their special passengers and tried to make the ride up as smooth and comfortable as possible. She flinched when it was her turn, the human crew moving her forward before hitching the lines securely around her. She heard a mumble apology from one of the younger men helping, the guy having felt her slight movement.

It was a_ very_ unpleasant experience.

It reminded her vaguely of when she had to do rock climbing in gym. Only this at a higher height, grating hooks instead of buckles, no mobility, and absolutely no one to spot her if she fell.

In other words; she hated it with a fiery passion and was going to fly back to the base on her own, discretion be damned.

The rest of the Autobots were hauled up quickly, the humans taking the small ramp up. Will walked forward to meet an older man that was waiting for him. He had greying hair and shockingly blue eyes. The two shook hands firmly.

"Lieutenant Colonel William Lennox. Thank you for allowing us aboard your ship, sir." Lennox gave the man a sincere smile.

"Captain Mc'Doven." The man introduced himself, waving his other hand off at the thanks. "I should be thanking you. It's not every day I have such special passengers." The Captain's eyes twinkled in suppressed excitement.

'_Mc'Doven, you are now dubbed as Captain Mc'Lovin in my mind forever more.'_

"Still, we really appreciate it." Will insisted, his hand dropped down to his side but his smile remained. He waved his hand towards each human as he spoke. "This is Sargent Robert Epps-"

"Epps is fine." He flashed his white teeth in a toothy grin.

"Seymour Simmons,"

"Nice boat you got here." The ex-Sector Seven Agent commented, eyes roving over it with a keen eye. The Captain nodded well naturedly.

"Sam Witwicky," The boy nodded in greeting.

"-and Mikaela Banes."

"Hi." She responded, shoving her hands into the pockets of her winter parka for warmth. Will then proceeded to introduce the rest of his NEST team.

"I'm sure the others wouldn't mind introductions once we are far enough away from the base." Will added, glancing at their alt forms which were placed on the deck of the aircraft carrier.

"Of course. We'll set sail immediately." Mc'Lovin stated. "Make yourselves comfortable. There are rooms and a kitchen below deck."

"Thank you, sir." Will replied automatically, manners obviously ingrained into him since birth. The ship started with a lurch.

They were more than half-way there.

(Line Break)

Twenty minutes and a hell of a temperature drop later Optimus finally stated that it would be safe to transform.

_:: As long as you don't- ::_ She transformed into her bi-pedal mode before he could finish his warning. A few humans jolted in surprise, staring up at her with their mouths slack jawed. _:: -scare the humans… ::_

_:: Oops. ::_ She replied, stretching her clawed appendages towards the sky.

"_Magnificent."_ The Captain she just noticed had exited the raised control room breathed. His eyes were locked on her. "Truly amazing." He continued. She just blinked at him, lowering her arms jerkily.

"If you think this is awesome you should see Prime." She commented. Before he had time to ask which one was their leader, Optimus transformed. The Prime leaned down to address the man.

"Thank you for allowing us access to your vessel, Captain Mc'Doven. You have our gratitude."

"It's no trouble." The man waved off easily, glancing between Prime and her.

"I am Optimus Prime, Leader of the Autobots." He waved towards the other Bots that were transforming around the ship.

"This is Prowl, my Second in Command." She narrowed her optics as Prowl nodded firmly in greeting. Wasn't Jazz Second in Command in the first movie?

"My Third in Command, Jazz." She tilted her head curiously. Was he sent down a level because he had died or was he only the SIC because Prowl had not been present? The mech suddenly did a flip, landing smoothly on his peds with a grin.

"Sup?"

"Our Medical Officer, Ratchet." Once he was introduced the medic scanned the middle aged man.

"You're vitals are above average for someone your age." Ratchet commented.

"Our Weapons Specialist, Ironhide," When Ironhide looked like he was about to show off his cannons the Prime sent him a sharp look.

"Our technician, engineer, and resident inventor: Wheeljack." The Einstein look alike waved.

"You can call me Que," He grinned, "I've been trying to get that nickname spread around for a while now."

"Our Combat Instructor, Sideswipe." The silver mech transformed sharply and just looked at the humans briefly without a word.

_:: He's pissed. ::_ Jazz muttered over a private communication link with her.

_:: Gee, you think? ::_ The Black Ops Bot just sent her an amused look.

"Our Scout, Bumblebee."

"_Rock the boat, don't rock the boat baby!"_ The yellow Bot surprised a laugh out of the man.

"And our Reconnaissance Specialist, Wheelie." The scrap drone ignored the introduction, setting his sights on the only known female for miles.

"Warrior Goddess!" The drone called, rolling over to her quickly and grappling on to her leg.

"Hi, Wheelie." Mikaela greeted warmly once she saw the ex-Con wasn't humping her leg this time.

"What about him?" Mc'Doven questioned, nodding his head to her.

"Classified." She said in the most cheerful, sing song voice she could manage.

"Are you ever going to tell us your designation?" Ironhide huffed.

"Probably not." She responded. She saw Sideswipe's optics zero in on her.

"How can you ask for our trust if you won't even give away your designation freely?" Prowl looked at her in seemingly curious fashion, only slightly accusing. She shrugged her shoulders.

"I'm on a boat, your statement is invalid." She replied, not in the mood for an argument right now. She carefully sprawled herself on the deck of the ship.

"That doesn't make any sense." He informed.

"Greenland is covered in ice." She diverted, seemingly random. She heard a soft grinding sound. She looked over at the Police Bot only to see his one optic flickering. She assumed that was the equivalent to an eye twitch.

"So what was the problem earlier?" She jerked when she heard a voice near her. She shifted her helm to see Mikaela standing a few feet away from her, Sam fidgeting nervously behind her. She focused in on the male human.

"Do you know anyone named Carly?" His head shooting up, the blush that rushed to his cheeks before they paled dramatically, and his eyes widening in panic told her all she needed to know.

"Son of a-" She lowered her head back to the ship's deck with a _clank._

"Why? What's wrong with Carly? Is she going to be alright? Is something going to happen to her? _What-"_

"Sam, calm down." She ordered. "Carly is fine, you're fine, everyone is fine. Just breathe, dammit." Bumblebee had already moved over, glancing between her and his charge sharply.

"It's alright, Bumblebee." Mikaela soothed, "Sam just overreacted." The girl in Megatron's body snorted. His girlfriend getting captured by Decepticons was something to overreact to, even though he didn't know yet and it was something she was trying to avoid. She already had a few vague ideas on how to accomplish this and was about to think of details to her plans.

Then a rush of boredom slammed into her and she realized she was about to make the trip a living hell for everyone else.

(Line Break)

"-This is the song that never ends, it just goes on and on my friends. Some people started singing it, not knowing what it was. Then they just kept singing it, only because! This is the song that never ends-" The humans had already retreated to under the ship's deck to escape her constant, repeated singing.

"Is anyone else contemplating abandoning ship?" Wheelie muttered. The only reason the drone was still with the rest of them was because the other Bots had decided if they all had to suffer, so did he.

"Youngling, I will personally dismantle your vocals if you do not stop singing _that song!"_ Ratchet finally shouted, patience wearing thin. There were a few moments of complete, blissful silence.

"I know a song that gets on everybody's nerves, everybody's nerves, everybody's nerves. I know a song that gets on everybody's nerves and this is how it goes!" She belted out, grinning manically.

"_Youngling-"_ Optimus barked in exasperation.

"That's it!" Ironhide roared, cannons activating in warning before Wheeljack suddenly shouted.

"Destination is in sight!"

"Oh thank Primus." Prowl breathed. Jazz just laughed, sending her a discreet nod of approval. She beamed back before hauling herself up.

"Finally." She muttered before shouting. "Last one there is a rotten egg!" She jumped up and transformed before the others could order her not to.

_:: No one fall in the water. ::_ Ratchet warned over the link.

_:: Why? ::_ Wheelie questioned warily.

_:: Because you'll freeze off your balls and die. ::_ She answered in a chipper tone over the communication link. She flew over the freezing water before transforming over the ice, landing carefully a few meters away from where liquid met solid. She could practically feel Sideswipe's optics burn into the side of her head.

_:: Come on my pretties. We have work to do. ::_


	9. Chapter 9

"We'll try not to take too long." Optimus informed the Captain politely, "Thank you again for allowing us to use your ship."

"Take your time." Mc'Doven responded. She huffed from where she stood on the ice, watching the Bots on the boat scan the ice with skeptical optics. Well, all except Bumblebee. The mech was much too busy fretting over Sam and Mikaela who had finally come up top with the rest of their companions.

"_Prrrrrrrrrriiiiiiiiiiiimmme."_ She half whined-half groaned in the most obnoxious manner she could manage. She saw his face plates twitch but he continued to speak to the Captain.

"Opppppttttttiiiiimuuussss." She bemoaned, making the most hopelessly dramatic puppy dog face she could with Megatron's features. He didn't even look in her direction. Her face morphed into a disgruntled pout. She noticed the Captain's eyes gleam with mirth as he glanced over at her. Ratchet rolled his optics as Ironhide snorted and Jazz grinned.

"If there is anything I can do to-" _Thwack_. Optimus's sentence was cut off as he went very still. The Prime slowly turned his helm. He looked at the youngling standing on the ice innocently, hands behind her back. He stared at her.

She stared back.

A few moments passed while the humans tried not to suffocate themselves with their fists.

"Did you just hit me with a snowball?" Optimus finally asked.

"I don't know," She responded, "Did it feel like this?" She quickly whipped out the hand from behind her back. She launched the snowball in her grasp at the Prime. He couldn't dodge properly and it collided with his shoulder.

Then she bolted in the opposite direction.

"Catch me if you can!" She shouted, sharp peds digging into the ground and launching herself further from the ship.

"Come on Optimus, you're not going to let a younglin' get the last shot, are ya'?" Jazz prodded when the Autobot leader didn't move. She looked over her should to see that he had paused. She frowned. For a moment, she thought he wasn't going to join in the game.

Then he leaped off of the ship and onto the ice after her.

(Line Break)

The others left the ship after their leader and the youngling he was chasing. Ratchet hopped off cautiously, glaring when Jazz pounced off the boat.

"Wait for me!" He yelled, speeding after the Prime.

"Jazz!" Prowl barked, jumping down from the ship. He skidded before gaining his equilibrium and raced after the mech. "For the love of Primus, be _careful!_" Ironhide dropped down with a grunt and raised a servo for Epps and Will. Bumblebee picked up his charge and Mikaela, bouncing down before placing them on his shoulders carefully.

"Hey! What about me?" Wheelie shouted at the yellow scout. Bumblebee rolled his optics before gathering up the small scrap drone and placing him on his shoulder as well. Wheeljack followed, cupping his hands together so he could lower more than a few humans at a time. That is, he was going to before Lennox ordered them to stay on the boat.

"Protect the ship and warn us if there are any signs of Decepticons." Will ordered. The ten NEST soldiers nodded in acknowledgement. The inventor transformed down, driving jerkily along the ice and after his fellow Autobots. Ironhide did the same but opened his doors for his charge and Epps before heading out. Bumblebee ran forward along the driving alt modes. The scout made sure that his three passengers had a firm hold on him. Ratchet glanced back at the boat to see Simmons waiting impatiently for someone to let him down from the deck of the ship. Sideswipe still stood on the vessel, staring off in the distance.

"Sideswipe?" Ratchet called as he gently lifted the ex-Sector Seven Agent and holding him in his palm that cupped near his abdomen. The silver looked at the medic evenly.

"I do not trust him." He finally stated firmly. "The only information he has given us has been haggled. He does not even give us a designation to go by. Even if he is not Megatron, fate saw fit to put him in the Decepti-scum's body for a reason."

"Sideswipe-" Ratchet sighed.

"No," The silver Bot cut off as he pierced the medic with his serious gaze. "I have sworn to protect my fellow Autobots from any Cybertronian wearing that insignia, Ratchet. I will not go back on my word, my oath." The mech dropped down onto the ice, fire burning dangerously within his optics as he finished.

"No matter what the cost."

Simmons felt a cold shiver of dread roll down his spine.

(Line Break)

She felt the urge to sneeze.

'_Cybertronians can-?'_ Before her half-formed thought could finish a metal body tackled into hers, bringing her in motion body to a complete stop as they both crashed into the ground. Suddenly, a booming laugh echoed over the frozen tundra. She blinked at the flamed mech in utter surprise. The others caught up quickly, smiles forming on their faces as they heard a sound they hadn't truly heard in decades. She climbed to her peds, dragging the Autobot leader up with her. She noticed Ratchet, Simmons, and Sideswipe finally join them.

_:: Optimus- ::_ She vaguely felt the slight difference in the message, knowing that only Ratchet, Optimus and herself were privy to the conversation.

_:: Yes, old friend? ::_ Prime questioned, a smile still adorning his face plates. The medic stared at him for a long moment before coming to a decision.

_:: …It's good to see you smiling again. ::_ Ratchet then calmly placed Simmons in Bumblebee's servo. She scrunched her brow plating at the explanation. While it was more than likely true, that wasn't what the medic had been about to say. She shook her helm. If Ratchet didn't think anyone, let alone Optimus, was ready for whatever his announcement was then she wouldn't pry.

"So which way to the energon?" Wheeljack's voice emitted from his alt form, the car seemed to _fidget_ with suppressed excitement before the bi-pedal version was suddenly in front of her. She connected to the location in her processor, scanning the surrounding area until she knew which direction to go in.

"That way," She pointed in a seemly random direction, "Right where Megatron landed."

(Line Break)

"Wow." Mikaela breathed, standing a few meters away from the large pit as Wheelie clung to her leg with one servo. The scrap drone was tugging insistently on her pant leg, trying to get the 'Warrior Goddess' to back away from the pit. Simmons, Will, Epps, and Sam were right there with her. Epps let out a low whistle.

"Yeah." Sam agreed. The human boy shifted forward slightly to glance over the edge before he quickly backed up, face slightly green.

"Don't like heights?" She grumbled adding humor for Sam and annoyance at the Autobots- who were taking way too long deciding who would be traveling down into the 'unstable' pit- in her voice. Sam shook his head. She was sitting cross-legged and closest to the humans. Bee was close by, conversing with Jazz and playing songs for the newly revived mech. Prime, Prowl, and Ironhide were determining who would stay topside as Wheeljack pulled equipment things from his subspace for the journey downward. Ratchet seemed distracted, probably about whatever he had neglected to inform Optimus about. Sideswipe was standing off to the side, no one brave or stupid enough to approach him while he was in a bad mood.

She glanced up when Optimus approached her, like one would a wild animal. She narrowed her optics at his cautiousness before raising an eyebrow at him.

"Youngling." He addressed, speaking slowly. Her curiosity was piqued.

"Optimus." She repeated in a similar fashion. The Prime adjusted his stance, looking more unyielding yet still as awe-inspiring as usual.

"It would be safest if you remain topside." All thoughts in her mind grinded to a halt. She blinked up at him, staring. She slowly stood up, vaguely mindful of the humans near her feet as she faced the Prime who was standing closer to the pit than her.

Then she grinned.

"Oh, I understand." She uttered in a chipper tone.

"You do?" Ratchet asked incredulously, snapping out of his thoughts. She glanced back at the CMO, smiling.

"Of course, why wouldn't I? It's not like I- _surprise glomp!"_ She suddenly lunged herself forward and clung to Optimus before the Bots could decipher what she meant. The Prime pin wheeled his arms, stumbling back. He backed up, looking for balance.

But there was nothing but open air.

They seemed to fall in slow motion. She noticed Optimus's optics widen in surprise and the crumbling of the edges of the ice when the Prime slipped, plummeting into the pit. She twisted slightly, seconds before they hit the curved ice so they shared the impact. After that, the darkness rushed by quickly as her optics tried to adjust to the no light. Then it was over. Optimus lay next to her, blue optics shining in the pink glow. She released the mech from her tackle hug and waited for his reaction.

_:: Optimus respond. ::_ Prowl said quickly over the communication link. Blue optics filled with shock cleared slightly, finally taking in his surroundings as he stood up slowly. The girl did the same, watching his reaction. She heard his non-existent breath hitch. She followed his gaze; reliving the same joy she felt when she first saw the magnificent sight. She did a quick comparison between the amounts of energon from before and today. It had only been two days ago, so she didn't expect a sudden regrowth yet. Though, she was pleased to note that it showed signs of quick crystal regeneration. She had been worried that it wouldn't form as quickly as she wanted it to, but it was coming along nicely.

"This…" The Prime breathed. She glanced at him and deciphered his expression easily. He hadn't really expected this much, maybe none at all. He didn't want to put his hope on something he hadn't truly seen, didn't want his expectations to be too high just to be disappointed. His grateful optics bore into hers and she knew.

He was definitely anything _but_ disappointed.

"Thank you." Optimus uttered sincerely. The Autobot leader put a servo on her shoulder, obviously thinking his words wouldn't be enough.

She just smiled.

_:: Optimus respond._ _:: _Ironhide ground out, only hints of worry in his tone.

_:: All is well. ::_ The Prime finally replied. His optics sparkled as his servo fell back to his side. She could feel the relief washing over the communication link. _:: We have found the energon. ::_

(Line Break)

She was topside once more. The harvest had gone well, despite the reprimands the older Bots- Prowl, Ratchet, and Ironhide- had given her about safety and blah, blah, blah.

Honestly, she had tuned them out after the fifth re-worded sentence that pretty much summed up as: 'You're a child, dark pits of doom are bad for children, you and Optimus could have gotten hurt. Do something like that again and there will be hell to pay.'

Bumblebee and the humans had already scrambled onto the boat, Jazz and Prowl not far behind. Ironhide looked at the ship in distaste before carefully boarding. Wheeljack followed, his whole personality and mood alight with pure happiness that hadn't dimmed since his optics had landed on the energon. Ratchet followed cautiously, glaring at the water. Optimus hopped up with little trouble and she did as well. Sideswipe was the last to glide onto the boat.

Most of the Bots- and herself- settled down as the ship started to move. The Prime had already spoken to the Captain about their successful mission and gave his thanks once more. After about ten minutes of being lost in her own little world, she glanced at Sideswipe, noting how his frame was stiff where he stood. She rolled her eyes over exaggeratedly towards Jazz, who had caught her look. He grinned at her from where he sat near Wheeljack. Suddenly she grinned back and opened her mouth, belting out a few lyrics.

"I dug my keys into the side, of his pretty little souped-up four wheel drive, carved my name into his leather seat." Groans were emitted from every direction.

"You have _got_ to be frickin' kidding me." Wheelie bemoaned, clinging to Mikaela's leg. "Don't leave me with them, Warrior Goddess."

"I took a Louisville slugger to both head lights, slashed a hole in all four tires!" She sung even louder, if that was at all possible.

"_Youngling!" _Ironhide barked, slamming his servos over his audio receptors as he glared at her with aggravation.

"Maybe next time he'll think before he-" She cut off abruptly, hearing static as a ping box erupted into her vision. She felt her stomach plummet.

**Soundwave. **

**Third in Command of the Decepticon Army.**

**Requesting Communications with Lord Megatron, Leader of the Decepticons.**

**Status: Important.**

"What-" She held up a hand at the Prime, accepting the call with trepidation.

_**:: Lord Megatron, we have received a scrambled signal from approaching Cybertronians. Status: unknown. Faction: unknown. Starscream and the other seekers: in-route. ::**_

_:: Predicted landing location? :: _She ordered, silently panicking. She heaved herself up to her peds, glancing at Optimus and grimaced when static in stereo came from the Bots.

_:: Optimus! ::_ Red Alert called over the long distance Autobot communication link. She vaguely heard Soundwave on her other line tell her the location. She acknowledged the fact that she understood before hanging up. _:: There's another group of Cybertronians approaching Earth. ::_

_:: Faction and status? ::_ The Prime's stance changed, now standing firmly as his shoulder's tensed slightly.

_:: Unknown. The signal was scrambled. ::_ She noticed Optimus glance at her with a look of understanding and she elaborated for everyone else.

_:: The Decepticons are already on their way. I just received an update from Soundwave. ::_ She confirmed. She heard Ironhide curse.

_:: Location and ETA? ::_ Prime questioned.

_:: By their trajectory, they're headed towards Lower Kazan Falls in Nunavut, Canada. Estimated time of arrival: forty-five minutes, give or take. ::_

"Do you think we can make it in time?" Ratchet asked Prime, facial plating tense.

"I don't know." Optimus responded. "But we have to try." The flamed mech moved toward the upraised control room, quietly asking the Captain if he could make the ship go any faster. She felt the aircraft carrier jerk before speeding up.

"What's going on?" Sam asked slowly, eyes darting to look at the tense Autobots on deck. Bumblebee tried to sooth the boy, but he only panicked more when his question went unanswered.

"_Sam_, calm down." Mikaela grabbed the boy's arm, gaining his attention. Sam took a deep breath before releasing it slowly. He gave his ex a sheepish grin.

"What's the situation, Boss Bot?" Epps called. Optimus looked down at the man with a grim expression.

"Unknown arrivals are approaching. The Decepticons are already on their way. If the arrivals are our allies, I fear we may not make it in time to give our support."

"So what's the plan?" Will questioned; facial expression serious.

"Get there as quickly as possible and not get slagged." Wheelie muttered.

"How many Decepticons are on their way there?" Prowl turned his sights to her. Her optics dragged over to him. Soundwave had said the seekers so…

"Five?" It sounded like a question even to her own audio receptor. She felt the need to explain. "Soundwave said seekers but he didn't specify any besides Starscream." She furrowed her brow plating in confusion when Prowl stiffened.

"There are _five _seekers?" Wheeljack asked, sounding somewhat horrified.

"You didn't _know_?" She responded with an incredulous tone.

"_No."_ Ironhide's gruff voice entered the conversation.

"Well… _surprise_." She said in a chipper lilt bordering on the edge of hysteria.

"How many Decepticons are there in _total_?" Wheeljack cut in with wide optics. She let a nervous laugh and brought her clawed servo to grip the back of her helm. She glanced away awkwardly.

"We're approaching seeing distance from land." Ratchet interjected. She thanked whatever deity watched over them for small mercies.

"Autobots trans-" She cut off the Prime by stomping her foot, gazing at him with burning optics. He looked at her in surprise. "What-"

"No." She stated firmly. "I will not be transported down by those rusty hooks. They're uncomfortable and agitating."

"Youngling, this isn't the best time." Ratchet informed sarcastically.

"I can fly." She pointed out. "I don't need to travel the same way you do."

"We are supposed to be discrete." Prowl cut in. "The humans would notice if we left with nine vehicles and came back with only eight."

"Humans park in driveways and drive in parkways." She bit out, watching with satisfaction when Prowl did the same eye twitch as before. She turned her optics back to the Prime. "Besides, I can get there faster and hopefully persuade the seekers not to attack if the arrivals are Autobots." With that, Optimus looked torn between allowing her to assist and keeping her from possible Decepticon influence/harm.

"How do you plan on doing that?" Ironhide inquired. "The Decept-scum will do anything for a fight." She felt a pang of indignation before she smothered it. Now was not the time to argue over clashing views. Even though she desperately wanted to reply that he wasn't any better at peace making. She motioned herself in an exaggerated motion.

"Hello, Decepticon leader body here." She gave him a dull stare. "And even if direct orders don't work -_which they should_- I can at least delay them enough for you to get there and give me a reason to call a retreat."

"Better plan than we have." Jazz imputed. Optimus looked between them before letting out a defeated sigh. He brought up a servo to his face before locking optics with hers.

"Be careful." She nodded.

"You too." She responded and was about to transformed before she looked directly at Jazz. Deciding she needed to put more emphasis on her somewhat-order; she took a step forward, pointing a clawed finger at the Black Ops mech who blinked in surprise.

"I _just_ brought you back." She stated. "If something happens to you, _I'm going to be really fucking pissed_. So you be careful too." He grinned at her, giving a mock salute.

"Whatever you say, younglin'."

(Line Break)

She was a few miles away from Lower Kazan Falls in Nunavut, Canada and closing in. Optimus had updated her a few minutes ago; informing her they were on the plane and about a half hour away. Now all that was left was to check Starscream's estimated time of arrival.

Or as she had dubbed it, the estimated time until hell.

'_Contact Starscream.'_ The Air Commander didn't make her wait long for a reply.

_:: Yes, your greatness? ::_ She heard the subtle sarcasm but didn't point it out.

_:: How long until you reach the landing location? ::_ The mech on the other line paused, possibly checking before he responded.

_:: About one breem and six kliks, _my Lord._ :: _She did the math in her head. A breem was around 8.3 Earth minutes. A klik was about 1.2 minutes. So… about fifteen minutes? The Autobots had spent ten minutes to get to the plane and they were thirty away. The Decepticons were going to beat them here, that had been a given but…

It looked like they would make it just in time for the arrival's landing.

That was a good thing for the Autobots. If the arrivals were of their faction, the Decepticons would have no time to attack the outnumbered and possibly weakened newcomers. It would also give her just reason to call for a retreat.

But if the arrivals were Decepticons, she couldn't believe that there would be a chance of no confrontation happening. The Decepticons would land, the Autobots would arrive, and all hell would break loose.

And, if she was honest with herself, she would probably side with the Decepticons.

Not that she would fight, _oh hell no_. She would get creamed in a matter of seconds and destroy any trust that had grudgingly been created with the 'Bots. But that didn't mean she wouldn't assist the 'Cons in escaping and retreating as intact as possible.

After all, if she was neutral, she couldn't very well only help the Autobots. She didn't want to see any of the Cybertronians die when she could have stopped or avoided it. No matter how disgustingly and hopelessly optimist it sounded, she really thought there could be a chance for a truce at some point. Not total peace, considering there really couldn't be such a thing in any productive society, but a mutual sense of agreement to continue their race in a way that benefited both their values.

_:: …Is that all, Lord Megatron? ::_ Starscream sounded annoyed by her silence. She had almost forgotten that she was still speaking to the Second in Command.

_:: Yes. See you there. :: Click._ She snorted. She had felt the short burst of surprise before she hung up. Plus, she didn't doubt he would be pissed at the abrupt disconnection. She sighed internally, steeling herself for the possible upcoming confrontation. She descended, landing in the estimated location. She glanced around. She heard the water from the falls a little ways back rush and trickle away. She felt the wind subtly brush against her sensor nodes and rustle the grass. She dragged her gaze upwards. She zoned in on what looked like six comets headed towards the Earth from far away. Actually, it seemed more like two groups. Two comets were in front at a different angle than the four bringing up the rear. Orange fire trailed after them, highlighted by the clear blue sky. She did a quick estimate, noting that they would be here in about twenty five minutes.

She stayed like that, just feeling and watching the world around her as the time ticked down. She took a deep, unneeded breath. She was only slightly upset that Cybertronians didn't _smell_ things the same way humans did. Their bodies broke down the 'scents' into their basic form and read them out on a ping box. She could feel the air rush in and out when she tried to breath or her fans kicked on, but she couldn't smell the air or the grass. And with the Cybertronian food tasting like total crap she was already two senses down. She let out a ventilated sigh. Suddenly, another ping box erupted in her vision. It informed her that Starscream was in the vicinity. She glanced up, counting as the five seekers came into view. Internally, she checked her built in clock.

'_Right on time_.' That left the Autobots fifteen minutes to get here before the new arrivals landed. She let out a greeting ping box, identifying herself to the 'Cons high up in the sky. They flew towards her and transformed smoothly.

"Greetings, your high _excellence_." Starscream acknowledged with a slight sneer. She felt her right cheek plating twitch and she turned to him abruptly.

"Oh _powerful_ and _infallible_ Air Commander." She shot back in the most sickeningly enthusiastic voice she could, laying it on thick. "How _wonderful_ it is to be in your _delightful_ presence. Would you like me to bow down and lick your peds, _sir_?" Starscream's jaw dropped. She noticed Slipstream smother a bark of laughter with her servo, optics gleaming. Thundercracker shook slightly before calming himself down. Skywarp and Misfire seemed to be in equal states of shock.

"M-my Lord?" Starscream stuttered out. She could practically see the gears halting to a stop within his processor. The girl rolled her eyes over exaggeratedly; ignoring the caught off guard mech and returning to her earlier position. She spoke as if she had never had her outburst.

"Arrivals' ETA: ten Earth minutes." She informed. There was a silence for a few moments before Starscream gained back his thought processes and slid up next to her. The girl raised an eyebrow at him, crossing her arms in front of her chest.

"Did you gain any information from the human, Lord Megatron?" She was glad that she had at least given some thought to explain Simmons survival.

"Any information he possessed was outdated. I released him in hopes the Autobots will find him." She confided, not completely false. "Next time he is spotted he should have more up to date knowledge. If he is found again I want him brought back to me; _unharmed_." She stressed, glancing at each of the seekers present. They all nodded quickly, murmuring their compliance.

Then something didn't go according to plan.

If she hadn't been staring intently at the oncoming comets she might have missed it. The first two fiery masses shifted in their course, accelerating their decent. She stiffened, optics zooming in as her internal systems calculated the new variable into the estimated time and location.

'_Crap, crap, crap!'_

"Lord Megatron," Slipstream started.

"I know. I see it." She growled out, optics narrowed on the approaching Cybertronians. They had approximately eight minutes until the Autobots arrived.

The first group of arrivals would reach the ground in two.

Different scenarios raced through her mind of the possible concluding outcome of this change. If they were Autobots, the Decepticons would easily overpower them. Two vs. five was is no way a fair fight, especially since the new arrivals could possibly be disoriented or injured. If they were Decepticon, then they would still have to wait to see if the four others were as well, thus returning to her earlier theory of a confrontation.

No matter which was she looked at it, someone was getting fucked.

'_Wonderful_._ It's probably going to be me. If I get shot again Optimus will never hear the end of it.'_

During her mini rant to herself, she only snapped back to the present when the earth beneath shook with the force of the first pod smacking into the ground, the second pod sending an echoing aftershock a few seconds later. Thundercracker grunted, reaching out a servo to steady his youngest brother. Starscream stood ridged while Misfire shifted his peds to keep his balance. She had automatically held onto the closest stable thing near her, this time being Slipstream. The femme had gone perfectly still, glancing at her out of the corner of her optic. When the tremors subsided she released the seeker, taking a careful step forward. Her vision zoomed in on the duo craters in distance. When the five Decepticons looked like they were about to follow she barked out an order.

"Stay." She stated firmly. Starscream, who was the first to move after her, froze where he stood. She transformed, jetting towards the pods that had landed near each other yet a still healthy distance away from where the Decepticons and herself had waited. When she landed, she shifted back into her bi-pedal mode. She kept her wings, ready to fly away if needed. Her optics roved over the two craters. She let out a low whistle, eyebrows rising as she appraised the sizes of the indentations and cracks splintering the earth. If they had felt any of the impact they would definitely be sore tomorrow. She assessed the pods, noting they were purple in color and wondered if that had any significance. She approached the smaller one slowly and cautiously when neither of them moved. She examined it, gaze dragging over the jagged metal concealing the Cybertronian that was definitely inside.

Then she heard the sound of air being released slowly with an almost inaudible _hiss_. The plates on the pod shifted outward and she backed up, optics glued on the opening. Her head jerked when she heard the sound of metal tearing from the direction of the other crater before snapping back forward when a Cybertronian crawled out of the first pod. She spotted the Decepticon insignia almost instantaneously and felt herself relax slightly. Her optics still narrowed, though. Why did he look familiar…? The unknown 'Con- who she now saw was also a flying mech- lifted his helm. Their optics locked and recognition dawned in hers.

She promptly started having an aneurysm.

"My Lord, vat a pleasure to see you again." The mech bowed shortly in greeting. She could only stare, dumbfounded. Her head felt warm and full of cotton, smothering any coherent thought she could have produced. When she didn't respond the mech blinked at her. "Is zere somezing wrong? On ze trip here we zhought it would be wise to learn ze organics' languages using zheir... Vorld Vide Web." She just tilted her head, looking at the mech like he had grown two heads… or three would probably be more appropriate if he was _exactly_ who she thought he was. The mech's faceplate suddenly morphed, shifting into a more unhinged look than his previous aristocratic-like features. "Ve found some _crazy_ things on zhere." There was a yell from the other crater and she looked over her shoulder to see another form she never would have guessed to greet lumbering up out of his hole. Without looking at them he called out to the mech in front of her.

"**Blitzwing, hurry up. We have to find-" **He cut off abruptly when he glanced into their crater, optics zooming in on her. The green and purple mech practically dove into the hole, landing on his hands and knees at her feet. She let out a silent choking noise. He looked up at her with absolute loyalty and devotion. **"Oh glorious and noble Lord Megatron! We have searched far among the stars to find you. Please forgive us for taking so long, my Lord." **

She was sure her brain was melting. If not, then she was positive this is what it felt like to have her processer fritz. They were acting _just like in the Animated Series_. But that didn't make any _sense_. The two fandoms didn't match up. There were too many inconstancies between the movie verse and Transformers Animated. Sure, there had been other characters that weren't supposed to be here but they didn't look like anything she remembered. _Prowl_ hadn't looked like his animated self, yet these two seemed like 3-D versions of Blitzwing and Lugnut based off of TFA. She dragged her gaze between the mechs before letting out a tinkling laugh, lilted with hints of hysteria. She twirled on her peds before walking out of the crater and straight towards the waiting seekers without a glance back.

She heard a couple pair of peds followed her from behind. She noted how Starscream's facial plating twitched, in surprise or dissatisfaction she didn't know. Though considering she was returning with an unstable seeker and an aft kisser that could rival Starscream, probably the latter. When she reached the seekers she finally wrapped her processor around the two arrival's presence. With a grin she patted Starscream's shoulder.

"Looks like I don't need you to try and be sincere anymore." The look he gave her was clearly unimpressed. She crossed her arm, indifferent to his stare. Without warning, another ping box shot itself into her line of vision.

The Autobots were in range.

She glanced at the sky quickly, determining the ETA of the last four comets. They had less than two minutes before the last of the arrivals would arrive. She watched as cars in the distance came into view, the rest of the Decepticons standing rigidly at the proximity ping. She grinned.

'_Just like clockwork_.'

"_**Autobot scum!"**_ Lugnut roared. The sound of his shout reverberated over the mostly flat land. She jerked at the yell, seeing as he was standing slightly behind her. The Autobots transformed, still a good distance away. They were out of shooting range and only slightly visible from human standards. Though, with her improved sight she could zoom in on them fairly well. **"You will all fall to the power of the great Lord Megatron!"** She had to choke back a laugh before she spoke.

"Lugnut," She addressed, "Be quiet." She saw him wither slightly at her order, obviously thinking he had displeased his idol. She glanced at the other Decepticons out of the corner of her eye. "We are not here to fight. If the remaining arrivals are Autobots, leave immediately." Lugnut and Blitzwing seemed confused. Starscream and Slipstream were suspicious while Thundercracker looked calculating. Skywarp didn't question it. Misfire was a mix of disappointment at not being able to prove his worth and relief at not having the chance to screw up once more. She kept her eyes trained on the Autobots, examining their stances and expression.

All of them were battle ready. Prime stood at point, stance unyielding and strong. His face guard was down, covering most of his serious expression. Prowl stood to his right, Jazz to his left. The revived mech had gotten narrowed looks from the 'Cons.

"Isn't that…?" Thundercracker trailed off, glancing at her to evaluate her expression. It was blank as she continued to assess the Autobots. Ironhide was next to Jazz. The broader mech already had his prized cannons activated, ready for battle. Bumblebee was a few feet away from the Weapons Specialist, bouncing on his peds and battle mask down. Wheeljack stood a little behind and to the right of Prowl, optics locked on the incoming comets. Ratchet's rigid form was beside him, gaze shifting between Sideswipe and her group of Cybertronians. The aforementioned silver Bot held himself eerily still. The girl shivered slightly in unease. She zoomed her optics in a little more, counting the twelve human soldiers by the 'Bots feet. She dragged her line of vision back to the Leader of the Autobots. She sent a quiet message.

_:: The first two arrivals landing moments before. Faction: Decepticon. Designations: Blitzwing and Lugnut. The order has already been given to retreat if the final arrivals are yours. ::_ She saw him incline his helm. She did so in return, the corners of her lip plates quirking. She saw the only Con femme shift her sights between them at the exchange. There was no time for Slipstream to think on it much, considering that the pods would land in three… two…

The ground shuddered with the force of the first Cybertronian of the second group hitting the Earth. The performance was only repeated with different intensity as the three others collided as well. The Decepticons that had experienced the first arrival expected it, shifting their stances accordingly. Lugnut was too dense and stable to be rattled while Blitzwing, who was still in his 'Random' persona, hopped from one foot to the other and cackled in delight. The Autobots seemed equally prepared, most likely from the retrieval of previous Bots. When everything settled, both factions were quiet and still as they waited for each other to make the first move. She turned her head to look at Blitzwing and Lugnut, hiding her unease.

"Do you know their affiliation?" Lugnut was too busy making intimidating facial expression at the Autobots to answer her. Blitzwing, shifting into his 'Icy' persona, spoke.

"Svindle vas supposed to land vith us. I don't know how he got so far behind." He murmured thoughtfully. "I believe ze rest are Autobots. Ve vere in a battle before ve got ze message to come to Earth. Ze must have followed us 'ere."

Before she could respond, the sounds of pods hissing and being ripped open were heard. She tilted her head, optics zoomed in so she could find the missing Decepticon and get out quickly.

"Thundercracker, Skywarp," She called hurriedly, "You two are in charge of getting Swindle back to the base." She sent a sharp look towards their two new arrivals. "You have flying alts, correct?" She specified. They both straightened their stances, nodding firmly.

"Ve used ze insect's information center to find ze appropriate scans." Blitzwing confirmed. Her optics darted back to the indentations, watching a blue mech making his way out of the first hole. He looked familiar too. She blinked as he raced into another hole, much faster than she thought possible.

"We are not here to fight." She reminded, "We get Swindle and get back to base."

"Why are we running from the Autobots?" Slipstream had the gall to question. "We have them outmatched."

"You want to fight them?" She retorted. "Fine, attack them on your own. See what happens." Slipstream's faceplates morphed into something vaguely insulted but she didn't put up more of a fight about it. No one else questioned the vague plan again. She noticed the eight make their way cautiously towards the pits. She paused, vision sliding from the blue mech helping and red and blue Autobot out of another crater to the purple and yellowish-green Con she recognized immediately.

"Go." She barked, launching herself towards the crater and starting the thrusters on her extended wings. She made it obvious that Swindle was her target to the Autobots who had rushed towards their allies in defense. Starscream quickly flanked her along with Lugnut on her left. Swindle's helm jerked up, seconds before she reached down and plucked him off of the ground. He let out a yelp, gripping onto her arm in return. She rearranged herself until she was flying upwards and released the mech into the arms of Thundercracker and Skywarp who had flown at their tails. She hovered there slightly, waiting for Slipstream, Blitzwing, and Misfire to join their group above the craters. The Autobots stood rigid, waiting for any attack the other Decepticons could have thrown. Instead, she just grinned at them.

"Retreat." She commanded loud enough for the mechs below them to hear, igniting her thrusters with more force and turning to fly away. The other Cons followed her, making their way in the opposite direction of the Autobots. She felt glad that she had gotten all of the Decepticons safely without confronting the Bots. Now no one would lose trust in her. Now no one would have to fight. And now no one would be hurt. Starscream moved behind her moving form, ready to fly at her side when it happened.

Sideswipe ran forward, engaging his weapons and fired at their flying group, optics blazing with rage. Two Cybertronian bullets ripped into the Air Commander that flew in front of her. Her optics widened in shock, audio receptors crackling at his pained screech. One of them had hit his leg, the other on his wing. His one thruster stuttered to a stop. She stared at he fell from the sky, tumbling through the air and towards the hard ground.

She would never know if those shots were meant for her.

She heard the dulled pain echoed from his brothers, yet neither move to help the Air Commander. In the five seconds that had passed, she realized why.

Megatron had ordered a retreat. They were afraid of the repercussions of not following orders.

She jerked in her flight, sending herself after the falling seeker. Everything that had slowed to a stop sped up as she raced to catch him in time, praying and _hoping _that he would be alright. In the moment in time, she truly believed that if she just caught up with him, if she could catch him, _everything would be alright_. Seconds before his body would have slammed into the unmerciful ground; she reached out and tugged him into her grip. She tried to slow their decent and succeeded somewhat, yet still her legs buckled when she hit the earth.

She looked down at the silver seeker, shaking as she looked into his dim optics. She felt her heart lodge itself in her throat. He was just sleeping. He had to be sleeping. _Please be sleeping_. She set him down gently, optics roving over the still mech's damaged areas. And he was still because he was sleeping, _because he couldn't be anything else. _

"S-Starscream." She murmured, feeling phantom tears prickle her vision. "Wake up." She carefully nudged his side.

He didn't respond.

"Starscream." She called, louder and shook him again. "You need to wake up. Then w-we can get to Hook… and you can get b-better."

He still _didn't move_.

She felt the cold pit of dread seep itself into her spark, her very _soul_.

'_No, no, no, no, nonononono.'_

_:: Ratchet! ::_ She screeched over the Autobot communication link. _:: Ratchet!Ratchet!Ratchet!Ratchet! ::_ She kept screaming his name over and over. He had to help. He _had to_. He could fix it. Please just let him _fix it and make it all better_. She heard the sound of fliers making their way back to her position and she whipped her head towards the Decepticons that were turning around.

_:: I said retreat! ::_ She roared.

_:: But Starscream- ::_ Misfire started at the same time Lugnut protested.

_**:: The Autobot scum- ::**_

_:: I don't care! Get back to the base! ::_ She screamed. They couldn't get hurt too. She _wouldn't allow it_. She watched them turn back to their original destination before putting her full attention on the seeker in front of her kneeling form. Ratchet was by Starscream's other side faster than she could blink. She stared at him, helpless.

"Tell me he's not…" She choked, gripping the seeker's arm to comfort herself. "_Whiiiiiiiirl." _Ratchet scanned the Decepticon Second in Command as the Autobots caught up. Prime's eyes darted from her shaking frame to Starscream and back again. His optics softened in compassion. Prowl had already grabbed the three new arrivals, keeping them back and trying to explain as practically as possible. Jazz sat himself at her side, gripping her shoulder in silent support. Wheeljack, Ironhide, and Bumblebee were among the humans.

"He's alive." Ratchet told her. She let her body sag in relief as joy, hope, and _happiness_ swept through her like a storm. And like a storm, it was all washed away when Sideswipe walked up, weapons still activated. She felt a black, justified and all-consuming _rage_ overwhelm her. She mentally gripped at it with all of her will, letting it feed and built until she was about to explode.

She snapped.

She ripped through Megatron's mind, unlocking and freeing everything she could find that could help her to confront, to fight against, _and to protect_.

Her arm that previous held onto Starscream for all she was worth released the Con. The metal shifted, morphing and re-creating itself into Megatron's fusion cannon. She snarled as she barred her pointed, jagged teeth at the silver Bot while her optics shown a dark red.

"I'll _kill you_." She ripped the words from her throat. "Come near _any _of my Decepticons _ever_ again and I'll make you _fucking wish_ I was Megatron, you little _whore_." She spat. The Autobots had jerked when she had called the Decepticons hers, staring at her in disbelief. Sideswipe only let out a humorless laugh.

"Your Decepticons? It seems I was right about you after all." His expression darkened, "You deserve that insignia." She jumped to her feet, an inhuman growl rumbling from somewhere deep inside and shaking her whole frame. She lowered her weapon to her side in favor of stepping over her seeker to keep herself as a shield between him and Sideswipe.

"Says the one who shoots someone in the back."

"He is on the opposite side of the war. He would have been offlined eventually." He retorted.

"That's _not the point!_" She screamed. "I'm trying to keep people from dying. How the _fuck_ do you expect me to make any progress with you _killing everyone?_ You see all of the Decepticons as ruthless murderers to help you sleep at night. Why don't you look in a _god damn mirror, _Sideswipe?" He stiffened at her accusation.

"You have no idea-"

"Do you see that mech?" She cut him off, pointing at Starscream. "He is mine. And do you see those Cybertronians?" She asked again, pointing at the Cons flying away in the distance. "Those are also mine."

"Youngling-" Optimus tried to interject, worry lacing his tone.

"You see him?" She questioned the increasingly annoyed silver mech as she pointed at the Prime. "Mine. And everyone else?" She waved her arm towards the other Autobots and the humans. "_Mine_."

"They are not-" Sideswipe snarled.

"_You see this foot_?" She continued, talking over him. "This foot isn't my foot. It's Megatron's. But so help me, if you _ever _hurt _anyone that is mine_ again, I will shove this foot so far up your tail pipe that you'll choke on it. You want to know why?" She narrowed her optics at him. "Because ain't _no one _fucks with my fandom, bitch. _Ain't no one_." She turned her back on him, walking towards Starscream who Ratchet had quickly patched up with the equipment he had on hand. The seeker would definitely need more medical care, but he would make the trip back to the Decepticon base now.

"You're just a traitorous little boy playing a _slagging game_." Sideswipe ground out, sounding closer than he was before. She felt her back go rigid as another rush of angry fire slammed into her system. She turned quickly, slashing her arm and feeling satisfaction when her clawed servo connected. She ripped jagged marks across his face, screaming curses internally when his head jerked to the side and a servo gripped his bleeding faceplates.

"I. Am. A. _Girl_." She forced out before picking up Starscream calmly and flying away, her back towards the shocked into silence Autobots, just daring them to shoot at her again.

Wisely, they did not.


	10. Chapter 10

**AN: Hey guys. Long time no see. I apologize for the long wait but this one really left me stumped, even though I see it as more of a filler chapter. It's shorter than I would have liked, but I hope you all enjoy it.**

**Warning to all Sideswipe fans: He's going to be an asshole for a little while, if you didn't guess from the last chapter.**

**Disclaimer: I do not own Transformers... or Narnia.**

**I would also like to give a special thanks to my beta (Copyright-Prime) for the term 'Sargent Sunshine.'**

**Note: Chapters 1, 3, 4, 7, 8, 9, and 10 were reposted for grammatical errors only. **

The Autobots stood there for a long time, processors stuck on the youngling's words that looped over and over _and over_.

'_I am a girl. I am a girl. I am a girl. Iamagirl.'_

"_**Optimus Prime, sir."**_ Blurr cut in, saluting to the Autobot leader. He glanced quickly from the other new arrivals to the other frozen Autobots. He spoke hurriedly, words rushing together. _**"Intelligence Agent Blurr: reporting. We have been sent by Ultra Magnus with an important message."**_ He motioned to Perceptor and to, the mech that had been surprisingly silent until now, Bluestreak.

"**Is anyone going to tell us anything?" **He started, asking another question before anyone had the chance to respond._** "**_**Why didn't the Decepticons attack us? Why did Ratchet heal the Air Commander? What did Prowl mean by 'Megatron isn't himself?' Why is Megatron claiming to be a femme-?" **

"**Bluestreak!"** Ironhide barked. The blue mech frowned at the reprimand but still waited for an explanation. The Prime let out a deep sigh, pinching the bridge of his nose plating in a human gesture he had picked up on his time on Earth.

"**It's a long story."** He sent a data burst of the events since their meeting with the youngling at the Texan town. While the three were absorbed with that, Prowl, Ironhide, and Ratchet turned on the seething mech that held a servo to his damaged face.

"What the _frag_ was that?" The Weapons Specialist asked roughly. Sideswipe's optics lit ominously.

"I was fighting a Decepticon. Or are we not supposed to do that anymore? Are we just going to give up the war, forget our codes of honor, change our insignia, and let this world burn on the whims of some human child?"

"You said it yourself, _she is a child_." Ratchet shot back venomously. "We _do not _harm children!"

"Why not?" Sideswipe's optics glowed, tone biting. "We obviously help Decepticons now, so why not change everything else while we're at it?" Ironhide was in his face before anyone could blink. He hauled the silver mech up by the armor on his chest.

"You _ever_ put a child in danger again and you won't have to get rid of your insignia. I'll do it for you." He snarled, shoving the smaller Bot away from him. The angry mech transformed down sharply, driving back towards where they had left the plane. Sideswipe stayed where he was shoved on his aft, head bowed. There was a long pause.

"What you did could have caused another battle, Sideswipe." Prowl informed, speaking evenly in the silence. "We were lucky she ordered a retreat. If not, we could have easily lost someone today." The Police Bot glanced at the other mechs present, optics lingering meaningfully on Jazz before he followed in the same direction as the irate Weapon's Specialist. Jazz's optics had softened in understanding. After getting a nod of assent from their Prime, the saboteur jogged to catch up to the Second in Command.

"Wheeljack, Bumblebee, Ratchet," The Prime called, feeling exhaustion wash over him once those two were out of sight. "Can you take the humans and our comrades back to the plane?" Bumblebee and Wheeljack nodded, transforming down quickly. Sam, Mikaela, Simmons, Epps, Will, and Wheelie all clambered into Bee. Five of the ten remaining soldiers squished into Wheeljack's alt, the others waiting patiently for Ratchet to turn into his alt mode. The medic hesitated, glancing at Optimus with a troubled expression.

_:: Optimus… ::_ Ratchet started over a private communication link. The Autobot Leader gave him a curious look.

_:: Something wrong? ::_ He asked in concern.

_:: I should have done something. :: _The medic barked out suddenly. _:: I saw he was serious about this. I _saw _it_. _I should have- ::_

_:: Ratchet. ::_ The Prime cut him off, moving forward and placing a comforting hand on the CMO's shoulder. _:: This isn't your fault. ::_ Ratchet sent him a data burst of Sideswipe's proclamation on the boat. Optimus watched it; opinion not wavering about the CMO's self-blame even as his servo fell from the medic's shoulder. He glanced at the silver Bot on the ground that had yet to move and he felt understanding seep into his frame.

_:: I still should have done something. ::_ Ratchet murmured. _:: Primus, how could I have not known the gender of my own patient? There were so many things I should have noticed. The signs were there. I just didn't see it._ _::_

_:: None of us saw it, old friend. ::_ The Prime responded. _:: If there is any blame, then we all must share it. ::_ Ratchet just shook his head. Yet, a smirk still quirked his features at their typical Prime, the one that always found some way to shoulder the blame on himself.

_:: Don't think I'll let you put the blame on yourself. :: _Ratchet informed. The Prime smiled well naturedly.

_:: Of course. ::_ With that, Ratchet transformed down and allowed the humans to board his alt form. With a barked order, he gained the attention of Perceptor, Blurr, and Bluestreak. Six of the Autobots headed towards the direction of the plane, Blurr and Bluestreak asking questions a mile a minute about the youngling. When they were out of range, Optimus turned to Sideswipe's form. He moved forward, noting how the mech stiffened when he stopped a foot away. He also noticed the surprise that lit up the silver Bot's face when he held a servo down to him.

"Wha-"

"I do not agree with your actions." Optimus intoned calmly. "But I understand why you chose to do it." Sideswipe scowled.

"You don't agree with getting rid of Decepti-scum? After all they've done to us?" The Prime shook his head, hand still outstretched.

"I don't agree with seeking out violence."

"This is _war_. How are we supposed to win if we don't use violence?"

"There is no winner in war." Optimus stated firmly. "The less unneeded causalities the better."

"Unneeded?" Sideswipe balked. "This is Starscream we're talking about. He's the Air Commander. Do you have any idea the huge advantage we would have if he had offlined?"

"Did you think of the huge destruction that would have also occurred?" The Autobot Leader responded seriously. "The trust we would have lost with the girl? She has already seen harming him as a betrayal. What do you think could have happened if he _had_ offlined? Not only would the child have possibly harmed someone or herself, his trine would have annihilated _everything_."

"But you heard her," Sideswipe continued, trying to make his leader understand. "She's going to protect the Decepticons. Her allegiance is with _them_."

"She also vowed to protect the Autobots and our human allies."

"Look at what she did to my face!" Sideswipe finally snarled, gesturing angrily to the clawed gouges marring his faceplates. "Does this look like protection to you?"

"She only attacked what she perceived as a threat." Optimus replied. "Were you so different when you tried to shoot her from the sky?" Sideswipe went rigid, muttering darkly under his breath. The Prime just sighed, realizing that Sideswipe wasn't going to give an inch just yet. He returned his arm to his side, knowing he wouldn't accept it.

"Let's return to the plane. The others are waiting for us."

(Line Break)

She was a wreck of crippling worry and unbridled fury when she finally reached the Decepticon base.

Skywarp and Thundercracker were waiting for her when she landed. The youngest was fidgeting while the eldest was perfectly still. Both of their optics locked on the prone form in her arms. Skywarp was by her side before she could move, any qualms he had about being close to 'Megatron' ignored in favor of getting a closer look at his injured brother.

"Is he going to be alright?" She closed her optics, arms shaking. She had no idea if he would be alright after this. Ratchet had done all he could, and Hook would too, but who knew how bad the damage was? She certainly didn't. In fact, she had avoided looking at the seeker the whole trip back. If she didn't look then she could pretend it wasn't that bad. She could fool herself into thinking he would come out of all this unscathed. But if she looked-

She could no longer keep false hope.

"I hope so." She breathed, opening her optics.

"Hook is waiting." Thundercracker murmured. He suddenly held out his arms, optics piercing hers. "I can take him from here, my Lord." For a split second her tired arms stopped their trembling and held Starscream tighter, more possessively. Only when she saw the deep pain written deep in Thundercracker's optics did she relax, handing him over. She was forced to see his condition.

Ratchet had done well in the few minutes he had. He had easily patching up the holes that still bled energon, yet not as badly as before. His leg didn't look well; a few sizzled wires were in view from the mostly patched wound. Yet, Bumblebee had suffered much worse when his legs had been blasted off. His thruster seemed repairable, but she had no real clue.

But still, he wasn't supposed to be _broken_. He was supposed to be the snarky seeker that got on Megatron's nerves and plotted behind his back. He was supposed to be the suck up that no one really believed but didn't question because that was just how it worked. He was supposed to _be okay_.

And if he wasn't in the end, then _someone_ would have more than just a few gouges to the face.

Thundercracker left quickly, sending out a static message to Hook to inform him of Starscream's arrival. Skywarp was about to leave after them when she grabbed his shoulder, making him freeze.

"Update me when you receive news?" It really was more of a pleasant request than anything. She would get information on the seeker's condition one way or another, but she wanted to let someone know she cared. The youngest seeker's face lit up in surprise before he nodded hurriedly. "Thank you." She murmured, releasing him and allowing him to follow his brother. She wanted more than anything to be able to go along with them, but she doubted her presence would ease the worried brothers.

She left the room a few minutes later, feeling suffocated. She just wandered, not noticing much of anything until she had somehow ended up in front of the door to the throne/main/rec room. When she entered, she immediately zeroed in on the stricken looking Misfire, whose head jerked up when she entered the room. Before he could start the internal debate on whether or not to ask her on the Air Commander's condition she communicated with him over a private link.

_:: He is alive. Thundercracker is taking him to Hook now. He is in capable hands. ::_ Misfire nodded gratefully, thanking her profusely over the line. She walked across the room quickly, letting her tense form slump in Megatron's throne.

It only took her a few moments to realize _something_ was not quite right.

She shifted her vision, glancing among the mechs and single femme in the room. Most were accounted for. Still… She tilted her head, narrowing her optics at an empty space. She felt a cold chill as she heard air swirl around her audio receptors. There was a strange _niggling_ in the back of her processor. It seemed dreadfully familiar, but _what_-

Just as quickly as it happened, it was gone. She blinked in surprise, frowning. Why did that seem important-?

Abruptly, a feather-like feeling trailed up her leg, rousing her from her thoughts. Her optics darted down, zooming in as her internal systems identified what it was.

'…_That's a spider.'_

She wasn't one of those girls that pretended they weren't afraid of anything. In fact, she was pathetically aware of how many things she found scary, frightening, or just down right unpleasant. Usually, she shoved all thoughts of her fears away so she wouldn't end up in an induced state of self-pity, paranoia, and loathing. Yet, every once and a while she would end up turning off a light in the living room and _sprint_ down the hall and into her room, jumping onto her bed as if it was a safe haven.

But, she was much bigger than a spider, even in her human form. Actually in Megatron's body, the spider was practically _microscopic._

She flailed.

Her abrupt movement quickly gained the attention of everyone in attendance. Her left leg snapped out, only heightening her panic levels when the spider didn't let go. The limb went ram-rod straight for a few tense seconds, her optics wide and unblinking on the tiny creature.

'_What if it gets under my armor?'_ She wondered frantically.

"**My Lord?"** Soundwave questioned, face impassive as he stared her. She ignored him, carefully reaching out her clawed hand toward the insect. If she could just _grab it-_

Suddenly, the creepy crawler darted up her leg. The limb tensed, all of her armor on that part of her body clamping down to keep it from fleeing to the safety it would provide. She hurriedly jumped up; hoping standing up right would slow its assent. She raked her claws against her leg, aiming for the eight legged hell spawn. When it skillfully weaved between her fingers she let out a cross between a scream and gurgled curses. Swatting at the monstrous thing, it finally left her person and floated its way to the ground.

But she would not let it escape so easily.

Her arm transformed smoothly into the gun she had threatened Sideswipe with earlier. She felt it charge up as she aimed at the deadly beast. She barely noticed how all of the Decepticons backed up, whether in fear or self-preservation, she didn't know.

Probably a little of both.

The Spider Lord of Death tried to flee, most likely to recruit more of his soldiers before coming back at full force. She fired, hoping to vaporize him before he had the chance to murder her in her sleep. Her arm jerked with the powerful blast, the after effects leaving her limb tingling.

But she _missed_.

How _the fuck_ did she _miss?_

She dove forward after it, arching her gunned arm and smacking the spider with a satisfying _squelch_. A grin flashed across her features before it was covered with a grimace as she felt the bug guts on her blaster.

"Disgusting." She muttered, scrapping her gun against the floor. When she removed the insect's innards, she transformed her gun back into a servo. She stood up swiftly, ignoring the optics that looked on with confusion, unease, deadpanned expressions, and hidden amusement.

"This will never be mentioned again." She informed before she sat back down, daring any of them to question it.

Like good little minions, they didn't.

Her musings for the next hour or so mainly consisted of: 'How the hell does a spider get in an underwater base anyway?'

She took a page from Megatron's book and blamed Starscream.

(Line Break)

Arcee was not upset.

Everything passed by her in a blur. She had been elated when the team returned, relatively unharmed. She was just about to see if she could start a conversation with the youngling that she had grown fond of when one look at their leader's stance informed them something had gone wrong.

Arcee didn't feel a spindle of dread coil around her spark.

The explanation-their leader's words drifted through one audio receptor and out of the other. There had been a flurry of motion around her.

Arcee was not in denial.

The humans who had been exhausted from the long trip had made their way to the platforms, slumping in their seats. Prowl stood stoic, a concerned Jazz keeping an eye on him. Ironhide strode till he was as far away as he could possibly be from his once student. Sideswipe stayed silent in the background, by the door and closest to the new arrivals who she dimly noted. They all looked around curiously, as if not fully letting the improbable news sink in just yet. She was vaguely aware of Ratchet and Wheeljack keeping a close eye on her. But that didn't matter.

The child was _gone._

"_Optimus Prime, sir_." Blurr addressed after the Prime had paused, the flamed mech having already reported much of what had happened. _"As I have stated, Ultra Magnus has sent us a message of the utmost importance."_ Optimus looked torn between continuing and telling the rest of the news or letting Blurr and the other arrivals give their message. Finally conceding that he could inform the rest of their group later, he nodded in assent.

Blurr collected a data-pad from his subspace. He quickly typed in the encrypted message retrieval code and set the equipment on the floor, right in front of the Autobot Leader. A large, life-sized hologram shot up from the device, forming a blue tinted replica of Ultra Magnus in full glory. Optimus felt himself straighten his stance. The holo-mech stood regally, there and not there, speaking calmly.

"**This is Ultra Magnus, sending an intergalactic message to Optimus Prime. Hopefully this message finds you well. I have sent three amongst our rank with supplies to aid you with the raging war against the Decepticons. Even I know this will not be enough."** There was a murmur of question as to what was being said by the humans, which Wheelie started translating softly in the background. He knew well enough to keep his voice low.

"**The war here on Cybertron is dwindling." **Ultra Magnus informed, not clear if they were on the good or the bad side of that particular sentence. **"More Decepticons are fleeing for the stars, and it is very likely they may have received a similar message to the one we have found. We believe they may be heading for Earth."**

"**I am devastated to say, that with the news of the Allspark, there seems no hope for our planet. Even though this is our home, there is nothing left for us here. We cannot **_**survive**_** here any longer. Energon is running low and there is not much left to protect."**

"**We have failed you. We have failed Cybertron. And we have failed ourselves."**

"**But even though the lives we once knew have come to a close, we will not give up hope. We still are one, we shall continue to stand strong, and we will follow in your lead, Optimus Prime. Even if the war drags on, do not fear. Help is on its way."** The message locked eyes with Optimus Prime.** "We are on our way."** The hologram fizzled out, the data-pad left sitting solemnly on the floor.

"Ultra Magnus is coming _here?_" Red Alert's frantic voice pierced the quiet. "But- We're not ready- the base- _the security isn't up to date!_" The normality of the response seemed to break most of the tension that had built up during the holo-mech's speech. Mirage snorted, shaking his head at Red Alert. Jolt frowned in disapproval at Mirage, but didn't say anything. Out of all the things Red Alert could have been frantic over, it had to be their sub-par security.

"Before we get into that," Ratchet said sharply, "You should all listen to what Optimus has to say." That piqued the curiosity of the mechs –Jolt, Mirage, Red Alert, Brains, Mudflap and Skids. The only Autobot femme was still stock still. Wheeljack and Ratchet exchanged a look as Optimus made metallic, grating sound that mimicked a clearing of the throat.

"It also seems we have made a thoughtless error." The Leader of the Autobots spoke with trepidation.

"What _else _could there possibly be?" Red Alert exclaimed. After the shocking news with Sideswipe's rashness, the youngling's attachment to the Decepticons, and the donning arrival of Ultra Magnus and their fellow Autobots, what could possibly compare?

"We assumed the youngling was male. We were mistaken."

Arcee jerked.

Something in her processor gave a jolt, spinning her thought process more rapidly than before. Feelings and sensations of _warmth-panic-joy-fear-not alone_ flooded her system. Connections were made, ancient coding shifting back in place as if it had been there all along.

_Femme-youngling-family-bond-caring-sisterhood-_

_**-Protect.**_

(Line Break)

_The wind brushed softly against her dark red hair. The dyed bangs swished, dragging the fine ends over her pale forehead. Brown eyes opened slowly, squinting in the bright light of the sun. The scent of fresh grass wafted to her nose as she inhaled deeply. Already lying on her back, she fanned out her hands, the greenery tickling her fingers and palms as she pushed downwards. Lifting herself up, she turned her head to take in the lay of the land._

_Her eyes absorbed the swirls of yellow, orange, and white that made up the foreign sky. The girl's fingers danced across the smooth green grass, color so bright it looked artificial. The blades went on forever, draping the rolling hills in a soft layer, as if mimicking a comforting blanket. The only other object besides the land and the sky was a twisted up tree, a mixture of dark purple and black. The only highlighting color was the blood red leaves that hung aloft, looking as sharp and dangerous as any knife._

_Yet, she felt no fear, only gazing at the tree with a sense of vague recognition, sadness, and understanding. She rose from her sitting position, gliding forward as if the air carried her across the ground. Only when she was a few feet from the only other form of life in this empty and beautiful place, did she realize the tree wasn't what it appeared to be._

_Even from a distance the base of the tree had looked jaggedly smooth, a contradiction that she did not mind enough to interpret. But the trunk was not the wood she had assumed it would be. Layering the strange vegetation was what seemed to be metal plating. Some parts, mostly along the top where the twisted metal branched out, were broken pieces. Others were smothered down, molded to form the likeness of a common tree._

_She reached out her left hand, just shy of touching the fascinating being. She was suddenly hesitant, only wilting further when the tree seemed to twist away even though it hadn't moved an inch. _

_He did not like her._

_A crushing sadness overwhelmed her, yet she stayed stationary. She wanted to know the tree, help him, and allow it freedom that it already rightfully deserved but could not be trusted with. She knew he would only abuse her guilt, she must not show it. Only after she had righted his world could she allow him to return fully._

_But she would not lock him away like she had done previously._

_The first part had already been done. He had answered her call for help, pleaded for a way to protect. Still, the chains still bound him, kept him silent. He had not even enough strength to brush against her consciousness long. _

_She took a deep breath and let her fingertips reach just shy of the smooth metal-_

_**:: Lord Megatron! ::**_

She lurched and fell off of her berth with a distinct _clang_. Muttering and snarling under her breath she clambered to her peds, rubbing the palm of her servo against her helm. Her red optics darted around the empty room with a mix of annoyance at being woken and relief that no one had been there to see her. Still slightly disoriented, she checked the time.

It was three thirty in the morning.

Someone was going to die.

The metal plating under her eye twitched. She had only gotten a few hours of sleep. She had originally planned on staying up as long as possible so she could be informed right away when Starscream regained consciousness. Only at Soundwave's persistence that she rest did she finally concede, retreating back to Megatron's room.

_**:: Lord Megatron? ::**_ The voice sounded much more timid at her lack of response. Only now did she recognize that it was Skywarp that had contacted her.

_:: What is it? ::_

_**:: Starscream is awake. ::**_

She was sprinting out of Megatron's quarters and down the hall before the seeker had even finished his sentence. Rushing down empty corridors as quickly as her legs could carry her she felt joy swirled with anxiousness cloud her thoughts.

Before she could dwell on it long she was opening the door to the medical bay, not taking the time to knock. She stumbled in, optics darting to the three other Decepticons and single drone sized mech beside the Air Commander she was looking for. A grin split her faceplates as she saw the disgruntled red optics glaring at her in contempt.

"What are _you _doing here?" The seeker spat, wings tensing as Hook stretched out his leg and tested his mobility. When the medic twisted it in an uncomfortable position Starscream kicked out his other ped. Hook smoothly dodged, straightening his stance and gave the irritated seeker a dull stare. Scalpel let out a tittering laugh.

"I believe Lord Megatron is here to check on your status in person." The perfectionist crossed him arms and subtly rolled his optics. "Only Primus knows _why_." He muttered. Starscream's expression morphed to something vaguely insulted. Once the attention was removed from her person she walked forward. She stretched out on the medical berth next to the Second in Command's, servos thrown by her head. She yawned.

"You just had to pick the most obnoxious time to wake up, didn't you?" She grumbled with one slightly amused optic peering at him.

"Of course." Thundercracker responded dryly. "We are talking about Starscream after all." She was honestly surprised at the teasing tone in his voice. She had known there was tension between the two brothers. Was that not as big of an issue as she had thought or had Starscream's recent injuries affected the eldest seeker?

"_Thundercracker!_" The Air Commander screeched in indignation. Skywarp just looked pleasantly surprised.

"Oh, calm down Sargent Sunshine." She admonished. Starscream balked at the nickname. She ignored the ruffled seeker and set her sights on the tired looking medic. She felt sympathy for the mech, having already suffered sleep deprivation. "I'm guessing he's going to be alright?" She questioned anyway. Hook nodded before speaking, voice not betraying the exhaustion he must be feeling. She wondered vaguely how many days before this he had not been sleeping well.

"Affirmative, my Lord." His optics narrowed slightly at her but when she blinked the look was gone. She titled her head. Was that a trick of the light?

"Ve vill need ze patient to come back for checkups." Scalpel stated firmly. Thundercracker nodded in assent. Starscream sneered as they discussed him as if he wasn't there. Skywarp patting his older, snarkier brother's shoulder in comfort but the seeker took it as a placating gesture and shook the servo off. He turned, lowering his peds to the floor. She sat up as well, optics trained on the seeker. He hauled himself up only to stumble. Her arm shot out, gripping his arm and keeping him steady.

"Be careful." She rebuked. He just scoffed before straightening his stance, wings held high.

"As you wish, _my Lord_." She rolled her eyes, releasing him once more. She glanced down at his leg, admiring Hook and Scalpel's handy work. Suddenly, a thought came to her, Arcee's words flittering over her mind in remembrance.

'_Once we have more metal and Optimus uses the Matrix, we can bring them back.'_

Her optics flicked casually around the room as the Air Commander walked out, limp barely noticeable. Thundercracker and Skywarp nodded respectfully towards her before following after their brother. The medic obviously had metal that could be used to fix the remains of the Arcee's sisters. The only question was _where-_

Well, she couldn't get it now. Hook would most likely wonder why she needed it, only putting more suspicion on herself. She rose slowly, getting ready to leave and let the medics get the rest they deserved when Hook called to her.

"Lord Megatron?" His voice was even, concealing any emotion as he spoke. "May I have a word with you?" She glanced at the CMO, noting how his arms were crossed and head tilted. If he could get with his dignity intact, she was sure he would have been tapping his foot.

She was scarily reminded of a mother getting ready to scold her child.

Hook glanced away from her for a moment to send the other medic a _look._ Scalpel seemed to catch the vibe of the room and realized this was not a good place to be, nor was he welcome. His small legs carried him out of the room as quickly as possible, the mech muttering under his breath as the door swished closed behind him. There was silence for a few seconds before she figured out he was waiting for her to respond.

"What is it?" Adding an impatient tone to her voice, she turned completely to face him, taller build shadowing him. Yet, he didn't seem perturbed.

"Do you have any medical training, my Lord?" The odd question threw her for a loop for a moment and she answered before thinking it through.

"No." Only after the denial passed her lips and Hook's optics narrowed did the girl realized she had made a huge mistake.

"Then would you mind telling me how you _and _Starscream have come back with stabilized injuries?" Her expression closed off, betraying nothing. She just started at him, refusing to answer. His optics flashed. There was a long silence as they both just stared each other down.

"You should go recharge." She finally intoned; optics hard. There was an implied order that the intelligent mech picked up on. Hook's optics dimmed and he walked out of the room without a word, brushing past her stiffly.

She waited, wondering if he was going to come back. Whether alone or with someone else was up to him. After a few moments of complete stillness, she figured this was a good as time as any to get the metal the Autobots needed. Vision scanning the room, she locked onto a door in the back. With hurried look shot toward the door into the medical bay, she slinked toward the back room.

Internally she hummed the Mission Impossible theme song.

(Line Break)

Slipstream roved her bored optics around her quarters, displeased with the simplicity and suffocating feeling of the averaged sized room. She was a _seeker_, for Primus's sake. Fliers needed room to move, needed the sky at their fingertips. Yet, the open air was so far away, high above the water level and only accessible through a labyrinth of twists and turns.

Plus, this room was _dirty_.

Slipstream's upper lip plating curled in disgust. She had only just arrived on this rock a few orns ago and she was already severely displeased. How were the Decepticons not the victors of this endless war? How did the Autobots and the organics manage to keep this planet from total destruction for this long? Why had Megatron forbade them from ending their enemies when they had the chance? Why was the _Allspark destroyed-?_

How was it possible not to have _one fragging cleaning droid_ in the entire Nemesis?

When tensions from Starscream's latest blunder died down, Slipstream needed to give some _strong hints_ to Lord Megatron about this cleanliness breach. She would not wallow in organic based _filth_.

Well, it was obvious she wouldn't be getting anymore recharge this orbital cycle. She lifted herself up from her berth where she had been lying on her front. With a superior huff, she left the room with a flourish, wings held high as she put a slight swing into her hips as she walked. After traveling down the empty, early morning barren halls for a few kilks she finally saw a familiar face rounding the corner.

"Tut, tut, Screamer." She purred in a sarcastic tone, smirk forming on her features. "Already get yourself kicked out of Hook's medical bay?" Starscream sneered at her as Skywarp frowned and Thundercracker rolled his optics subtly.

"On the contrary," Thundercracker cut in before Starscream could retort, earning a scowl for his efforts. "He is repaired and we are on our way back to recharge."

"Speaking of, what are you doing up so early?" Skywarp questioned hesitantly. Slipstream scoffed.

"That is none of your concern."

"Finally putting yourself to _good use_?" Starscream replied with a raised optic ridge, implying much more than his words let on. The femme's optics flashed in disgust.

"Not everyone is as… _needy_ as _you_, Starscream." She responded, wings held high as she brushed past them. Starscream shrieked some unpleasant things at her retreating form before the trine continued on their way back to their individual quarters. The femme smirked, congratulating herself on a job well done. Bothering the Air Commander had become a wonderful game to relieve stress.

Suddenly, she paused when her optic locked on Scalpel rushing down the hallway like he was being chased by a hoard of Autobots and muttering to himself.

"**Vonder vhat mein Lord did to slag off ze medic zhis time. Zhey alvays exclude me. Vhy do I nebar get to zee any action?"** The small 'Con didn't even spare her a stray glance as he past her.

Suffice to say, Slipstream's interest was piqued.

She directed her aimless wandering to the medical bay, curious as to what was going on.

(Line Break)

The door slid open with a soft hiss, the light from the medical bay not reaching far into the dark room. She stepped forward cautiously, a servo held out just in case. She was wary of getting sucker punched in the gut by a damn table again. She flinched slightly when the door closed behind her as her optics adjusted to the no light.

Glancing around the room -which she now saw in a mixture of black, white and grays- she was abruptly reminded of every single creepy video game and show she had ever had the displeasure to play or witness.

Crap.

Steeling herself, she started searching the room. She didn't dare look for a light switch which could easily give away her position if any 'Cons entered the medibay or Hook defied her order and returned. Stumbling awkwardly around the room, she attempted to carefully search for anything that looked like spare metal.

Key word: _attempted._

As she moved a little too quickly past a table that had everything immaculately in place, she stubbed her toe-ped-foot plating-_whatever-it didn't fucking matter because it _hurt-harshly against one of the legs. She bit out a sharp curse and a few tools and boxes on the work station tumbled and clattered to the ground. Hopping on one foot, she reached out a stray arm for support.

"_Shush!_" She hissed viciously at the inanimate objects, glaring at their gray silhouettes strewn across the floor. Her clawed, slightly flailing hand finally came into contact with something stable and she let out a barely auditable sigh of relief. Glancing up at the large item supporting her –which she now noticed was in the far corner of the room- she felt her forehead plating furrow as felt the soft material of cloth under her servo tips.

She slowly pulled the covering off of the object; her foot that had been held suspended gently finding its way to the floor. She tilted her head as the cloth revealed what looked like a closet. She released the fabric from her grasp, reaching up to drag her hand against the metal cabinet. Only, it didn't seem the right shape. Her servo traced the curved metal until she reached the side of it, feeling the seam of the opening.

"Are you the gateway to Narnia?" She murmured under her breath. Taking a step back, she tugged the cabinet open.

Then she immediately regretted it.

Her whole body jerked back, a violent and static _'kuuuuuurccccccccccchuuuuuuurk'_ sound ripping itself from her vocals.

"_Fuck!"_ She barked harshly, throwing herself backwards and slipping on the wayward equipment. She smacked into the ground hard. She scrambled backwards until her back hit the wall, halting her movement. She flopped over and crawled quickly to the door on her hands and knees. After practically ripping the door that hadn't opened fast enough, she froze at the lean, metallic legs that blocked her escape. Her gaze slowly trailed up the sleek frame only to lock eyes with the only other female on the Nemesis.

'_Uh-oh.'_

(Line Break)

Slipstream had the advantage.

She knew that the moment she had entered the medical bay and heard the tell-tale signs of a mech in Hook's back room. She knew for a fact that the medic wasn't in, considering she had watched his silently fuming form crossing her path a few kilks after she had encountered Scalpel. There were a few possibilities as to who was stupid enough –or who had enough suicidal tendencies- to go through the medic's personal projects. She stealthy made her way to the door to get into a better range of hearing. She winced imperceptibly at the ruckus the intruder was creating.

If said mech even left one thing out of place, Hook and his OCD would no doubt run rampant when he returned.

"_Fuck!"_ The human curse, which was slightly muffled by the metal separating them and the loud bang that shortly followed, caught her attention. The voice was unmistakable, and her suspicions were only confirmed when Megatron practically ripped the door open in his haste to leave the room.

He was on his hands and knees. Oh, this was _just too good_.

Or, it was, until Megatron's faceplate morph into an expression of unbridled _rage._

(Line Break)

She didn't know what came over her.

She felt the same curious tickle in the back of her mind, like a brush of air. That was all it took. One moment the girl had been on the ground, feeling her heart sink at the sight of the seeker and the next she was on her feet; towering over the femme. Black hate welled up in her system, turning her vision red. She wanted to rip the smug expression from the femme's faceplates. She wanted to crush her helm in her palm and listen to her screams; make her feel helpless. She wanted Slipstream _away from her._

_Get her out, get her out, getherout!_

She lunged forward, claws digging into a surprised Slipstream's shoulders. She let out a guttural snarl that welled up from somewhere deep within her throat. Warnings and pop ups flared in her vision as her fans kicked on and her system started to overheat. She gripped the femme's shoulder harder and harder until she cried out, letting out a high pitched shriek.

Her hold loosened immediately. The girl blinked slowly as a wave of dizziness washed over her and she groaned. She only now noticed a sharp pain in her wrists and looked down slowly, as if moving her head would destroy her whole equilibrium.

Slipstream had dug her claws into the teen's arm. The girl looked at the seeker's shoulders that she still laid her servos on and felt her tank roll with disgust and her mind reel with horror. Bleeding gouges stained her hands with bright energon that dripped down the stiff frame. Her optics darted to meet the femme's and only saw a hard mask that gave nothing away, even as her optics flashed briefly in pain. Slipstream was too proud to show how badly it had hurt, and she refused to allow her body to tremble.

The girl ripped her hands away from the seeker as if she had been burned. She wanted to blurt out how sorry she was. She wanted to go back in time and stop herself from whatever just happened. She wanted to let out the distressed trills that got caught in her chest.

"Go find Hook." She barked instead, feeling shame cloud her mind as she tore her gaze away. The femme nodded stiffly and left. When she was sure Slipstream was gone, she stumbled backwards into the back room, no longer caring that she was in the same room as a corpse. She sunk down to a sitting position and crossed her legs. She stared listlessly at her energon caked hands.

What was happening to her?


	11. Chapter 11

**Disclaimer: I do not own Transformers.**

**Note: Reposted because I wrote something stupid that didn't match with moviecannon, which I'm not surprised by. But this was a big difference. If you've read this already, just skip down to the part with McDreamy and re-read the paragraph there. That's all I've changed.**

After her incident with Slipstream, the girl had retrieved a cloth from Megatron's subspace and methodically wiped her hands clean. Then she painstakingly picked up the items she had scattered on the floor and rearranged them on the desk. She dimly hoped that it wasn't completely out of order. The whole time she avoided dripping her own energon from the shallow cuts on her wrists. She saved the worse job for last and approached the body that was leaning out of the open coffin.

Her optics noted the straps around his midsection that seemed to be the only thing holding the corpse upright. She also, somewhat incredulously, discovered how perfect his frame was. While she couldn't see anything in color with her night vision, she could easily discern that there didn't even appear to be a scratch on him. Hook was taking his OCD and desire for perfection to new levels, but it was expected.

After all, Scrapper had been a part of his team.

The girl tilted her head and reached out a clawed servo gently. She lifted the Con's lifeless chin to stare into dead optics. She debated, wondering if it would come back to bite her. Bringing back Jazz was one thing but Scrapper? It would probably be easy enough with the Shard, but what if he had remembered things like the Black-Ops mech had? Would he rat her out if he recalled? Would Scrapper hold it against her as blackmail to get whatever he wanted? Would the mech even _want_ to return to the world of the living where the war still raged on?

Would Hook and the other Constructicons stop looking so horribly incomplete?

Her forehead made a muted clang when she smacked it lightly to the top rim of the coffin. She groaned internally. She knew she would regret this. She knew it wouldn't help her out in the long run. She _knew_ the Autobots would be _pissed_.

But when had she ever indicated something like that would stop her?

The girl gone Decepticon heard the sound of the medical bay being entered and the irritated grumbling of the medic. She turned her head and increased her audio receptor sensitivity when she tried to listen harder to the muffled voice.

"**-tells me to leave, only to break someone and have me come back."** Hook's annoyance was as clear as day. She safely assumed that he was fixing Slipstream's shoulders. The girl could practically feel the tension in the other room at the seeker's silence. Slipstream wouldn't warn the medic, or maybe she already had and Hook didn't care? Unless the seeker didn't think Megatron would stick around. While Hook wouldn't chew him out, Megatron's life and time in the medical bay could become sufficiently unpleasant. The girl released the mech's chin and quietly moved until she was leaning against one of the tables in the backroom.

After about ten minutes, Hook had not-so-politely told Slipstream to get out. She heard swish of the door closing behind the seeker as she left while peds shuffled around the medibay. The sound moved toward the backroom and she didn't move as the door opened on command. Hook froze in the doorway when he saw her red optics gleaming in the darkness. His optics darted over to the open casket and his shoulders tensed.

She tilted her head while assessing his reaction. While anyone would freak out to have Megatron waiting ominously for them, especially if they had been complaining about him within hearing distance, the medic seemed more worried about her finding the intact body.

"You fixed a dead solider to perfect condition?" She broke the silence at last, voice level. Her gaze dragged along the mech in the coffin once more. How much time, energy, and material had Hook spent to bring a lifeless husk to perfection? She doubted Megatron would approve. The medic was supposed to be keeping his living soldiers in working condition. In fact, she mused idly as she remembered the second movie, with the way the Autobots had so easily used Jetfire's body Megatron would have probably expected the medic to scrap the Constructicon for spare parts.

"Lord Megatron, I can explain-" Hook started to say in a rush but stopped when she held up a clawed servo.

"Am I correct to assume that you spared no quality material; that he is in perfect condition inside and out?" The medic hesitated, but nodded stiffly.

"Hm." She murmured noncommittally. With her own reminder that there was much more to fixing a body -alive or not- than finding a couple slabs of metal, she frowned. The girl had no idea what Ratchet would need to reconstruct Arcee's sisters. Hook was still and she sent out a request for communications to the Autobot medic.

_:: Youngling? ::_ Ratchet sounded stunned for a moment. She briefly wondered why before the girl remembered her enraged exit. The CMO regained himself quickly. _:: What's wrong? Are you alright? ::_

_:: Yes, Ratchet. :: _She responded in amusement. _:: So is Starscream, so you can assure Optimus that I'm not going to take another hunk of Sideswipe's face. I don't blame you guys for his… eagerness either. I just have a question. ::_

_:: Better be a good question to require you to contact me at 4 am. :: _Ratchet responded. She snorted over the line.

_:: Can you send me the list of medical supplies you would need to fix Elita One and Chromia? ::_ There was a pregnant pause on the other side of the line before the CMO spoke, slightly suspicious and curious.

_:: What are you up to, youngling? ::_

_:: It's a surprise. :: _She replied in a chipper tone. There was a rough sigh over the line before a ping erupted in her vision. _:: Thank you. Now, while I'd love to bug you all morning, I have another medic to deal with at the moment. See you soon, Ratchet. ::_

_:: Why do you need a medic- ::_ He started before she cut off the communication link. She refocused her optics on the mech still standing uncomfortably in the doorway, not daring to come closer or leave. She motioned him forward anyway.

Hook glanced at the out of order table and twitched, but he did as she asked and stood in the middle of the room. The door closed, leaving in darkness that was only penetrated by the light from their crimson optics. She started to circle the medic, watching his dark optics dart to keep his gaze on her. She was mostly doing the intimating part because she thought it would suit Megatron, and she had already been acting horribly out of character in front of the Decepticons. She needed to reestablish the respect that they held for their leader. Unfortunately, Megatron had mostly gained it out of fighting and fear. While she had no idea how to fight, she did have the advantage of being trapped in the body of one of most frightening and intimidating mechs to ever walk the Earth, and she was milking it for all it was worth.

"What would you give to have him back?" She murmured. The thickness of tension in the air could have been cut with a blade. She stopped behind him, towering over him out of his direct line of sight. "Could you give up perfection for him, Hook?" Her clawed servo reached around and dragged over the space in front of his chassis and he flinched.

"It doesn't matter what I would give, my Lord." He found the courage to speak. "He is offline." Her optics glimmered as she walked and completed the circling, stopping in front of him.

"Not for long." Hook's helm, which had been lowered respectfully shot up. His optics locked with hers.

"That is not possible." She raised an eyebrow ridge at his declaration.

"Really?" The girl uttered. "Are you sure? I was almost positive I was correct, unless you are accusing me of being wrong."

"I… I'm not! But it's… you can't…" Hook's mouth was working but he couldn't seem to gather his thoughts together, processor already whirling with the possibility.

"I have a list of things I will require in return, but I assure you, _I can._" She forwarded the list of medical supplies Ratchet needed before he could question her on what she wanted. The girl knew he would be wary; he was essentially making a deal with the devil. The medic looked through the list with a stony expression that melted into surprise.

"This is it?" Her eyebrow plating twitched at his inquiry. There were a lot of parts on that list. "There are a few I don't have on hand, but I'm sure I could get them from Swindle, my Lord."

"That is all I require at the present time." She confirmed before she grinned and leaned in his personal space. "Unless you would prefer I ask for more." Only after the words slipped past her mouth did she realize how _badly_ that could have been taken. She wanted to rip the suggestive words out of the air and shove them back down her throat. Maybe then she would choke and die on them.

"So you can get the supplies?" She continued quickly, leaning back with her servos crossed over her chest.

"Yes." The medic replied shortly. "But I still don't understand how you are going to…" He trailed off, optics slipping from hers to move to the lifeless husk leaning out of his open casket.

"Leave that to me." She shrugged off his concern with a flippant wave before heading towards the door and leaving a skeptical, but oddly hopeful Hook behind to close the casket and obsessively rearrange the desk she had scattered previously.

(Line Break)

_:: Why do you need a medic- ::_ The distinct _click_ of the youngling hanging up cut off the Autobot CMO's question. He let out an aggravated huff before his optics focused back on Wheeljack. The truth was that the youngling hadn't disrupted his recharge cycle, considering he was already awake. The inventor was sitting in a stool near the medical berth that was currently occupied by their only online femme. She had collapsed almost immediately after Prime's declaration.

The two of them had held their suspicions on why the femme hadn't had a strong reaction to the knowledge of a youngling being among them. At first, Wheeljack had offered the theory that since she was in Megatron's body; Arcee's maternal programming hadn't kicked in. Ratchet had been skeptical, knowing that the form shouldn't matter. If femmes could have willy-nilly decided which sparklings, if any at all, activated their core programming, there wouldn't have been as many deaths associated with their make during the beginning of the war.

What Ratchet suspected was much worse.

"You alright there, Ratch?" Wheeljack asked after a moment of silence. He was curious about the conversation the medic had, but knew if Ratchet wanted him to know he would find out. The medic snapped out of his dark train of thought and nodded stiffly.

"Yes." He muttered, dragging a servo over his faceplates. "Just a call from our mutual friend." Wheeljack's optic ridges hiked upwards in surprise.

"Really? What'd she say?" The inventor hesitated a moment, fiddling with his hands before he asked a question. "She… she is coming back, yeah?" The CMO moved his helm as if he was trying to crack his neck before he leaned forward, hovering over the femme that had no outward or inward signs of distress or a health issue. It bothered and frustrated the medic that he could do nothing until she woke up. He scanned Arcee again, just to make sure there was no change in her condition, as he replied.

"The youngling assured that she would be back." Wheeljack's shoulders relaxed, but that was not all that happened. The femme's optics snapped open. Arcee's balled servos shot out, one connecting harshly with Ratchet's shoulder. The medic grunted with a retreated step. He didn't even glance at the metal he knew would be dented. Arcee was sitting up on the medical berth, taking in her surroundings with sharp optics. Wheeljack had gotten out of his chair and given her the appropriate amount of space, shooting a concerned glance at the medic.

"Arcee, you are among friends." Ratchet assured. Her frame seemed to relax when their gaze met.

"What happened?" She asked quickly, looking between the two Bots. Ratchet moved forward and laid a hand on the femme's shoulder. His facial expression was a mix of stern and sympathetic.

"We discovered something about the youngling; do you recall what it was?" His optics were trained on her expression, searching for any sign of recollection. The pink bot tensed under his hand and she looked at him sharply. She wrenched her arm away from the CMO, servos curling into fists.

"Why didn't I-" She cut off abruptly when her voice cracked. She slammed her fists into the berth harshly with a sharp yell. Ratchet jerked his helm at Wheeljack, indicating towards the door.

_:: Tell everyone awake to stay out of the medical bay unless absolutely necessary. ::_ His tone left no room for argument and the inventor trusted his judgment. With a compliant nod, Wheeljack left Ratchet's domain. The medic didn't approach Arcee, instead waiting for her fit to subside. The femme slammed her servos into the berth repeatedly, cries getting louder, sharper, and more agonized.

Carefully steady and unyielding servos wrapped around her wrists, holding her arms still. The CMO saw the flash of panic cross her features and shook her, jolting her frame to make her pay attention to the present.

"Look at me, Arcee." He ordered with voice less gruff than usual but still demanding. Bright blue optics landed on his in surprise. "It's not your fault." Her faceplates morphed into something stormy. Anger mixed with despair blended with regret and longing.

"I could have fought back. I could have done something, anything." Her hands uncurled, arms going limp in his hold. "They needed me." Ratchet offlined his optics for a moment, gathering the strength and support to carry on with this conversation, even though he desperately didn't want to have it. Turning his optics back on, he leaned his helm forward, taking up most of her vision.

"There was nothing you could have done. It is their fault, not yours." Arcee seemed to break at these words and bowed her helm into his chassis, letting out a rough sob.

"It's not fair." She wailed. He let go of her wrists and she clung to him like a lifeline. His arms came to wrap loosely around her. The medic stared fixatedly at one point in the wall as she cried. "I couldn't feel her. I didn't _care_. What kind of femme _doesn't care?_" Ratchet scoffed, as if what she said was unbelievable.

"You think you would have comforted her if you didn't care?" Arcee shook her head, but not in answer to his question. It was as if she was trying to block out his words and fall deeper into self-loathing.

"It's not the same." The pink bot whispered. "I tried to get closer. Maybe I could feel it then. I cried because I couldn't feel anything, even when she confirmed her age. I thought the coding could just be smothered." Ratchet's arms stiffened at her words. It was becoming more and more obvious that what he suspected could be the truth. Arcee suddenly reared back, angry fire alight in her optics. "But it's _not there."_ She ground out. Her servos lifted and clenched on his shoulders. The medic tensed at the pressure, but kept from wincing.

"Arcee, what do you feel about her now?" The medic asked bluntly, arms slipping between them to cross over his chassis. The femme narrowed her optics and shot off of the berth. She paced back and forth, gaze flicking towards the medic piercingly.

"I just told you; weren't you listening?" Ratchet arched an optic ridge at the irate question.

"You told me what you thought before. Tell me what you feel now."

"Why should I check broken coding?" Arcee spat, getting more defensive. The medic stood slowly, giving her a level stare.

"Because we've been thinking she's more of a threat than an asset." There was no inflection in his voice, and his faceplates were stony. The pink bot couldn't believe what she was hearing.

"What?" Her voice sounded hollow, distant. Inside she was a raging inferno of betrayal. Any rational thought was wiped away as she activated her weapons. "You don't touch her!" The pink bot ripped the words out of her throat. She pointed one threateningly at the CMO, framing shaking. Ratchet held both palms up nonthreateningly.

"I scanned you after you collapsed." The medic informed. "I found no disruption in your coding." Those words sent all thoughts in Arcee's processor to a grinding halt. Her wound tight, aggressive stance uncoiled slightly. She looked at Ratchet in confusion.

"This was a test." She accused, half relieved and half irritated. Ratchet's lip plating twitched and he nodded. The pink bot shook her helm in exasperation and disengaged her blaster. "You're insane." She sighed. The CMO snorted before his faceplates shifted to something kinder. He moved forward and placed a careful servo on her arm.

"The important thing is whatever the Decepticons did to your coding, the block, is gone." She nodded. Ratchet's grumpy exterior returned as he lowered his servo. He turned back to his work counter, making a shooing motion with his servo at her. "Now get out of my medical bay and get some rest." Arcee rolled her optics and started to follow the order, but paused at the door.

"Hey, Ratchet?" She called, turning slightly towards him as she sent the command for the door to open.

"What?" The medic snapped back, sending her a half glare that had no force behind it.

"Thanks." Arcee held the metal of the doorway and gave an appreciative smile. The CMO shrugged a shoulder.

"It's not me you should be thanking." The pink bot gave a huff and just before the door closed behind her, she heard Ratchet call out to her.

"Oh, and try not to damage Sideswipe too badly when you find out what happened. I'm the one who has to put him back together!"

(Line Break)

The girl gone Decepticon had returned to Megatron's quarters to get some more sleep, but after two hours of staring listlessly at his ceiling, she decided it just wasn't going to happen. During that time, she had a few hours to think about how to proceed. She would attempt to fulfill her side of her agreement with Hook, but she truly had no idea if it would work more than once. For all she knew, the second revival could be a dud. She grimaced. That would _suck_.

But she didn't just dwell on that. She still had no idea how to get home. A good start would be to get the schematics for the failed ground bridge from Shockwave. It also wouldn't hurt to see how far he had come along with the plans for the working one. So at 6 am, she lifted herself from the berth and headed to where Megatron's memory files indicated Shockwave's lab was. Hopefully he was up in about, but if not, she would wait.

Fortunately, it seemed Shockwave was an early riser. She walked into the room with her hands clasped behind her back as she glanced around. Shockwave stood at attention and bowed his helm when he saw who had invaded his lab in the early morning.

"Shockwave." She acknowledged, optics trailing to the large ground bridge that seem to have been touched up since Megatron had last seen it. "I have come to inquire of your progress with the ground bridge."

"It is coming along, my Lord." Shockwave made known. "There are a few more tweaks I need to make with the equation, but I am confident it will work next time." She inclined her helm in acknowledgement.

"I will require the schematics for the ground bridge as it is now, as well as when I tested it. You will update me when you make any progress." Shockwave paused before he complied. He snatched a few data pads off the desk. The Decepticon's sharp servos flew across the machine before he lifted another one and pressed them together. There was a low beep. He did it once again with a different set of data pads. Shockwave handed her the copies without further delay. She glanced at them and tried not to stare blankly. She had no idea what was written. She shifted to the other one and didn't gather any more than from the first. Hearing and reading Cybertronian were two _completely _different things. She shrugged internally. Wheeljack could read it, and if not, he would figure it out. She subspaced them.

"Is there anything else I can do for you, my Lord?" Shockwave queried.

"Not yet." She disclosed before she turned and exited the lab.

(Line Break)

She once again found herself in the throne room by the time noon came around. She had discovered during the previous week that the Decepticons were prone to shenanigans when out of Megatron's presence for too long; Starscream especially. The girl had no delusions that the seeker wouldn't still be trying to overthrow the Decepticon leader, even if his thoughts were mostly swirling around on how to get revenge on Sideswipe. The only consolation was that the Air Commander had no idea where the douche was.

Her optics dragged over those in attendance. Some were off doing minimal tasks or their assigned duties. Most were just hanging around since she hadn't given them a plan of attack or further orders. It seemed her sitting among them made a few nervous, but they continued with their innate chatter. A few memory files had informed her that the plan for Dark of the Moon had already been set into motion and had been for decades. Soundwave had been on Earth since the 1970's. He was the one to discover the Ark on the Moon, and recruited human servants from both the U.S. and Russia space agencies to grind further exploration to a halt. The TIC had also ordered a few Decepticons to steal and hide some of the pillars and hide them under the moon's surface. After Megatron collected all of the Decepticons he could find and huddle them in the Nemesis, he had deemed the lives of the human allies unimportant, only this time he hadn't ordered their execution. Still, any sign of treason would result in termination. But she wasn't worried. The only reason the one man had told Sam was because he felt threatened. Also, Dylan Gould, the only one chosen to live during the movie, had delusions of grandeur about his future place among the Decepticons. Part of her was giddy about having McDreamy a flight away, before she realized he would still be the egotistical, rich boy, traitorous to his own species, _pet_ that made up Dylan Gould.

But _damn_, was he cute.

She was interrupted from her musings, which she really shouldn't have been having in the Decepticon leader's processor, by an approaching Swindle. The mech had a particularly satisfied and slick smirk planted on his faceplates. She raised an eyebrow ridge when he bowed low in front of her throne, for all in attendance to witness.

"**Lord Megatron, it is an honor to be in your commanding presence once again." **Her one clawed servo curled into a fist on the armrest as she tried to keep herself from snorting out a lung, or whatever the Cybertronian equivalent. Swindle straightened and locked his purple optics with her dark red. **"I would like to request an audience with you as I have come across something that may pique your interest." **She paused before she inclined her helm in acknowledgement. She was about to stand and offer a less populated place to see what he had in mind, but Swindle pulled something out of his subspace before she could speak. He obviously wanted to show off whatever he had acquired. It might have been out of pride, or for insurance. It was most likely the latter. This way, if Megatron didn't want it, some other mech could buy it off of him if they so desired.

Then Swindle presented the last thing she had expected.

She was frozen in horror at the object in his servos. Everything seemed to slow to a crawl and her hearing and vision heightened. Her shoulders had tensed minutely while her optics widened. Megatron's spark was trying to rip itself out of her chassis; it was pulsating at such a fast pace. Swindle's smirk widened into a grin when he obviously had mistaken the look on her faceplates for awe. Soundwave didn't. She felt the mech's gaze on the side of her face as she heard him and his cassettes take a step back.

"**It's pretty, isn't it?" **Swindle hedged, twirling the case holding the purple crystal. **"I came across it recently, right before I ran into your excellent warriors." **His wrist flicked in a charming way towards Lugnut and Blitzwing. **"It has a similar composition to energon-"**

"What is it doing on my ship?" Her voice was deadly quiet; it was comparable to the calm before the storm. Swindle shuttered his optics in surprise. His faceplates looked vaguely uncomfortable for a split second; he had expected praise for finding such a unique item.

"I thought you would find it to your liking, Lord Megatron." The Con –in more ways than one- replied, seamlessly shifting to English. A hush had settled over the room as some mechs shifted to put their full attention on the pair.

"How much of it do you have?" She prodded. A somewhat regretful expression flickered across the Con's faceplates.

"Unfortunately, this was all I could find." Her zoomed in on his face, looking for any traces of deception. She glanced at Soundwave and the mech nodded. Her hard gaze pierced Swindle, even though the TIC had acknowledged his honesty in this regard.

"You have no idea what you hold." She warned before her features shifted to something darker. "You tell me that this crystal is like energon, yet you have no idea what it would do to a mech. Do you expect me to consume it; to see if it made me more powerful?" She snarled, lifting herself up from Megatron's throne. Swindle took a half a step back, but her frame was already looming over him. "Or did you expect me to _offline?"_ Conversation broke out across the room. The panic that crossed over the Con's faceplates at the accusation was almost funny. It seems she wasn't the only one who thought so, because Blitzwing broke out into hysterical laughter.

"Ahahahaha." She could see his 'Random' persona was back at the moment as the mech mock wiped away tears of hilarity. "Trying to azzazzinate Lord Megatron? And people zhink I'm ze crazy one!" Misfire and Skywarp seemed to obtain second hand embarrassment over the unstable seeker's remark. Starscream's faceplates were suspiciously smooth, even as irritation seemed to gleam from his optics.

"So Starscream is certifiably insane?" She cut in. "Good to know." The emotionless mask the Air Commander maintained shattered. His helm whipped from the stunned Blitzwing to her. He was about to shoot a few venomous words her way, or possibly grovel in defense of his loyalty at the blatant call-out, but Random spoke before he had the chance, pointing in her direction.

"He made a joke!" He bounced on the balls of his peds, looking like an overeager child. "Make another one!" Lugnut came up behind the mech with the split personality and conked him over the helm. Blitzwing face planted into the floor.

"**Be silent!"** Lugnut shouted. Blitzwing's faceplates morphed abruptly to something more rugged. He shot to his feet with an enraged expression. She looked upwards and sighed, shaking her head.

"**Vhat did you do zhat for, you lump of scrap?"** Hothead barked. The larger, purple mech waved an arm threateningly.

"**No one mocks Lord Megatron in my presence without consequences." **At this point, she was kneading the metal on her forehead. She glanced up and immediately zeroed in on the smirk that flashed across Starscream's faceplates before he opened his derma. He was about to get retribution for the jab at his stability.

"**Lugnut, are you implying that our **_**glorious**_** leader needs to be protected?" **The seeker drawled, feinting astonishment and incredulity. Lugnut's single optic widened, realizing he had essentially belittled Megatron's ability to handle the situation himself. He stumbled to the ground in front of her feet in a submissive bow, spouting apologizes. Blitzwing shifted back to Icy and shook his helm in exasperation. The girl sent Starscream a glare filled with venom, but seeker was too busy being smug to quell at her expression fully.

"As I was _saying,_" She raised her voice over the blubbering mech. He quieted instantly. The girl sharply shifted her sights back to Swindle, who had wisely stayed silent and still. She held out a clawed servo. "Thank you for the contribution to the cause. Your assistance is wholly appreciated." Swindle gave her a blank look before a slow smirk crawled across his faceplates. He had seen what she had done, and while he didn't appreciate it, he could respect it. The mech placed the container in her outstretched servo. The Con raised an optics ridge as he noticed the shallow, barely noticeable cuts that had already started to heal. With a grin, Swindle graciously placed the container in her palm and bowed.

"Anything I can do for my number one customer." She rolled her optics at his thinly veiled amusement. She held the clear case in front of her face, optics trailing across the glowing crystal. The purple shine demanded all of her attention as the spark pulsating in her chassis increased in volume. _Thump. Thump. Thump. _A rush of dizziness made her brain feel like cotton and her vision spin. The only thing in focus was the shard of Dark Energon in her hand. _Power-stronger-unbeatable-want-need-mine._

_Thump. Thump. Thump-!_

No.

Her helm jerked to the side, optics snapping offline. A harsh whoosh of air expelled from her vents. She banished the container to her subspace before sending Swindle a glare, even though it wasn't completely his fault.

"If you acquire any more, I would compensate you for transport." Swindle inclined his helm in acknowledgement, optics gleaming with greed. She turned to return to Megatron's throne, but not before sending out a nearly silent private message to the mech.

_:: Hook requires a few items only you may possess. I'm sure you can find a profit there. ::_ The girl gone Decepticon then proceeded to pointedly ignore his presence as she sat back down, optics dragging warningly over those in attendance. Everything returned to a semblance of normal. Swindle spent a few more minutes in the rec room before slipping out.

(Line Break)

_**:: I have collected all of the materials you required, Lord Megatron. ::**_ The message came an hour later. She had to keep from rolling her eyes to the ceiling.

'_Finally.' _She thought in exasperation. Hook had already told her he had almost everything. The time was most likely spent bargaining over a price with Swindle- the greedy bastard. She sent a return message, ordering him to get the back room ready and that she would be there in a few kilks.

She stood from the throne, giving a nod to Soundwave when the mech looked up. She noticed Starscream glance up sharply at her movement, but pointedly ignored the seeker who was getting doted on by Misfire. Leaving the door to the throne room, she headed in the direction of the medical bay, only to glance over her shoulder when she heard ped steps behind her. When she caught sight of Starscream's determined expression, she groaned internally and walked a little faster.

"Master, may I have word?" The Air Commander caught up quickly and followed a half a step behind.

"No." She bluntly responded, tone flat. The seeker seemed taken aback before he scowled.

"Why not?" He demanded indignantly. She let out an aggravated snarl of air bubble out of her throat. A barbed look met Starscream's question. The girl ripped her gaze from him and kept walking, denying the mech the dignity of an answer. The seeker's wings hiked up slightly but he came to a stop in the hallway. She was almost relieved. Then the Air Commander had to open his mouth.

"I know what you're planning." The girl gone Decepticon halted in her stride. She desperately wanted to believe that it was a bluff, that he hadn't overheard anything after she kept him from plummeting into the ground. She turned her helm slowly to stare at Starscream over her shoulder.

"So does Soundwave and a few others. We have been going over the plan against the Autobots for about a solar cycle." The teen was referring to the plan to send a Decepticon to where the humans stored the Cybertronian technology, thus prompting Optimus to uncover the discovery of Sentinel's ship. They needed a Prime to use the power of the Matrix to bring him back before they could move forward and bring back Cybertron. Soundwave had come across the information almost a year ago. The seeker narrowed his optics on her.

"That's not what I'm talking about." Starscream snapped at her. The Air Commander glanced around and lowered his voice to a furious whisper. "I'm on to your plan involving Skywarp." His optics were alight with accusation and self-justified anger. He had thrown her for a loop though. The girl turned halfway to look at him from the side. She had talked to Skywarp, like what, twice? Was Starscream that paranoid that the mechs around him were plotting against him? The seeker he accused was his own trine mate, his brother!

"What?" She offered dumbly, needing an explanation for whatever the seeker believed he figured out. But Megatron's voice sounded more like a raspy growl than a dumbfounded inquiry.

"Don't play with me!" The seeker spat. His wings shook in outrage. "You're _after_ Skywarp." Now he thought the warlord wanted to get rid of the youngest in the Command Trine? They were one of his greatest assets.

"I am not." She curtly replied. If this continued for much longer, she might have to drag Starscream with her to the medical bay, just to get his processor checked. The Air Commander stomped his foot in an undignified manner.

"You _are!"_ He took a few steps forward, pointing a sharp digit at her. "I see it; the way you keep treating him." The seeker started counting off on his fingers. "You gave him energon, _your ration_, out of everyone else in the rec room, you kept him from digging, you made him in charge over _me_, and he told me that you asked _him_ to give you an update on my condition. You showed concern in front of _Skywarp_ for _me_. You refrain from _hitting_ me." He looked indignant at the very thought of these simple actions. She blinked at him and he let out a noise of frustration and finally shouted what had him in a tither.

"My brothers are not pleasure drones! You can't _have _them!" Her jaw dropped as realization of why he was so _pissed _came over her. She quickly connected the same dots the Air Commander had. When he said _after_-

Oh.

_Oh._

"I didn't- no." She denied. Suddenly, a snort escaped her. Then a guffaw followed. The girl was soon roaring with laughter as her frame shook in mirth. She leaned backwards as a hand hovered over her mouth, the other gripping her stomach. "No." The teen forced out between snickers. She tried to control herself but when she looked down to see Starscream's insulted expression she dissolved into a new round of hysterics. When she finally got ahold of herself, she made sure to keep her optics off of the seeker, lest she get caught once again in the vicious cycle.

"Then what is it?" The Air Commander spat. "Something's changed." All amusement fell of off her features and she turned to look at him fully, a serious expression written across her face.

"Did you really prefer how things were before?" She asked skeptically. Yet, she didn't wait for his answer. The girl turned and continued walking towards the medical bay.

Starscream didn't stop her.

(Line Break)

She entered the medical bay calmly but Hook still seemed terribly tense. The teen could understand why, but it didn't make his stiff posture bother her any less. The medic seemed to be pulled tight in anticipation, as if someone was about to strike him. Perhaps he didn't want to get his hopes up in the odd chance that this was all a ploy; a sick game created by Megatron for his own entertainment. Hook had given over the collection of supplies easily enough. There really wasn't any reason to refuse, considering she could have just ordered them from him with nothing in return from the beginning. After subspacing the precious materials, the girl headed towards the back room, the Decepticon doctor following not far behind.

She took in the now brightly lit room. It seemed larger in the light. The room was set up in a way that told it was mostly used for patients who required privacy. It almost looked like the room Knockout had kept Megatron's prone form within in Transformers: Prime. Except the place where Arcee and Bumblebee had hid was missing along with a few counters and boxes pressed against the walls. She approached the berth occupied by the dead mech before she turned to the medic, nodding approvingly.

"This will do." Seeing as Scalpel was nowhere to be seen, the girl assumed that Hook had convince the small 'Con to steer clear of the medical bay. Her clawed servo came down to rest near Scrapper's helm. The girl traced the lines of the mech's body with her optics, confirming her earlier belief that there didn't seem to be a scratch on him. Noting his yellow paint job, she idly wondered if he would repaint it to the green and purple the rest of his team had changed to since his death.

After taking a steading intake, she turned to Hook abruptly. She pulled the Allspark from her subspace, holding it gently in the palm of her hand. The medic let out a sharp noise of surprise as she offered it to him. She stared at him seriously with somberly calm optics.

"You think… it's just the Shard, my Lord. How do you know it will work?" The Decepticon doctor questioned hesitantly.

"He doesn't have anything to lose if it doesn't work." The girl reasoned. Hook's gaze pierced her at the comment. He took it for what it was. A warning. But while it may not work a second time, that didn't mean she wasn't going to try. The medic nodded stiffly, but eyed the Allspark fragment warily. Instead of touching it himself, he grabbed a pair of tweezers from the counter and carefully picked it up from her outstretched servo. She raised an optic ridge as the medic inspected the Shard for a brief moment before she stepped back. The teen stood a few feet back from the berth, near the offline frame's helm.

She watched with her arms crossed lightly over her chest and ready for any sudden movements. The girl tensed when Hook moved to hover over Scrapper's chassis, fragment held aloft as the medic's other servo unlatched something under his armor. There was a soft click before a crack in the offline Con's chest plating appeared. The Decepticon doctor pried the armor open, exposing the spark chamber. She couldn't really tell him that wasn't necessary without giving away the fact that she had used it before, no matter how unintentional. A mostly withheld shudder trembled Hook's frame at the sight of the empty casing, but a steady servo lowered the Allspark shard to touch the lower edge of the spark chamber.

Nothing happened.

Her spark sunk into her tanks and she offlined her optics, hoping that when she opened them again, Scrapper would be alive. She took a deep intake and turned her vision back on. The picture was the same. A medic that had the sliver of hope for his teammate shredded into tiny pieces was pressing the Shard onto a lifeless Scrapper's empty spark casing.

Hook's servo spasmed as internal pain flashed over his features. The tweezers slipped from his grip and tumbled to the side of the berth. The fragment stayed where it had been placed, a glaring reminder of her failure to follow through with her side of the bargain.

The Decepticon doctor's hand fumbled to pick up the tweezers as his shoulders shook, subspacing the tool. The girl couldn't have felt any worse if she tried. She had done this, built up his hope only to break the mech even further. A desperate thought came to her. Maybe it just needed contact-? But Hook, who seemingly forgot his wariness to touch the Shard, trying to pick up the Allspark with slipping digits banished her remaining ideas.

She took pity on the medic and moved forward to collect the fragment herself. The doctor noticed her approach and lowered his empty servos to grip the side of the berth, helm bowed. She reached out and opened her mouth a moment before touching the Allspark.

"I'm-" Her uncharacteristic almost-apology was cut short when her digits came into contact with the Shard. Blue, electromagnetic sparks erupted from the fragment and rippled over the offline mech's frame. She ripped back her hand, the Allspark in her grasp, and stumbled back with a strangled noise that bubbled out of her throat. Hook stood frozen in horror and amazement as the body arched close to the point of snapping in half.

When the electricity stopped dancing along the prone form, Scrapper's back thumped back onto the berth. Only the sparks didn't disappear like she thought they would. With the Construction's chassis open, the girl got to witness what happened _inside _when a Cybertronian was revived.

The electricity had sunk into the mech's frame. The sparks slammed harshly against the inside of the spark casing. They moved faster and faster and faster until it looked like one continuous loop of energy. Abruptly, the electricity wound into a tiny ball before exploding in the Con's chassis, a brilliant, shining spark thrumming gently in its place. The metal that served at the spark's protection slowly slide back closed, hiding the breathtaking light. There was dead silence in the medical bay before there was the sound of fans activating and a soft groan from the previously dead Scrapper. Hook's intakes hitched as the servo near his lifted. The yellow mech rubbed his palm against his helm as one of his optics onlined.

"…**Hook?"** Scrapper muttered in confusion, giving a dubious stare to the medic's paint job. **"How long was I out?"**

"**A while."** The medic answered in a clipped tone, most likely try to keep his voice or posture from betraying him. The girl gone Decepticon watched the interaction with a blank face and mind, trying to wrap her helm around the newest development. She distantly heard the revived Con snort. Her optics dragged to the servo that Hook had tried to pick the Allspark up with; it was the hand that hadn't revived Scrapper.

What?

"**Did we at least win?"** He didn't seem to notice her presence, but she had retreated a ways and Hook was in the opposite direction.

"**What's the last thing you remember?"** Hook squinted at the leader of the Constructicons skeptically. Scrapper averted his gaze to the side, thinking. The teen listened with half an ear, mind to busy working to try to find an explanation. She stared at the now living Con with incredulity and irritated confusion.

No seriously… _what?_

"**Err, the last battle?"** The yellow mech hedged, obvious put out by Hook's reaction. The Con continued to recall his last moments, seemingly not realizing he had died… yet. **"We combined and were destroying the… the pyramid."** She slowly pulled her gaze away from the pair, satisfied that Scrapper had no recollection of anything past his death. Her optics landed on the fragment that sat innocently in the palm of her hand. She scowled at it, wanting answers that it couldn't give her. She subspaced it glared at the medic, who had glanced up at her movement.

"The specific events that happened in this room will not be shared." She commanded, catching Scrapper's flinch at her unexpected voice. Not bothering to wait for a reply, she left the room and the medical bay, ready to get out of this mind-raping ship.

What the actual fuck.

Soon she was in the air hanger, having already ordered the Con who was stuck with the duty for the day to send it upwards. As an afterthought, she sent a message to Soundwave.

_:: I am leaving for a few orbital cycles. You and Starscream are in charge. ::_ She uttered before closing the link and transforming. With a roar of her engines, she was in the open air and heading back towards the Autobot base of operations.

'_If it turns out I'm a Mary Sue, I'm going to have to cut a bitch.'_ With that thought, she relaxed her tense form, letting the worries roll off of her frame. It wouldn't be best to meet them already in irritated mood, especially if she had to deal with Sideswipe. With a snort, she increased her speed.

She had bigger things to worry about than Mary Sue bullshit.


End file.
